Tearaway leads Joystick nominations

The 32nd annual Golden Joystick awards are due to take place

The video game industry's answer to the Oscars takes place in London tonight, with the 32nd annual Golden Joystick awards.

The biggest names in the industry will be present, with comedian Ed Byrne overseeing proceedings as big name titles like Grand Theft Auto V and Call of Duty are among the franchises up for awards.

2014 has been a big year for the games industry, with Bungie and Activision title Destiny launching in September with a reported budget of 500 million US dollars (£310 million), bigger than a Hollywood blockbuster. The game is up for the Best Visual Design award, but will face stiff competition from the likes of Assassin's Creed IV and Metal Gear Solid V - two existing powerhouse franchises.

Mobile gaming on smartphones and tablets has also had an impressive year, and Device 6 is the perfect example of how far this segment of the industry has come - with six nominations to its name at the ceremony. The game uses the text and images on-screen as a puzzle to be solved as you move through the pages, as well as narrating and guiding you through the action.

Platform game Tearaway leads the nominations, with seven.

Sixteen of the categories have been voted for by the public, with a selection of further awards to be handed out that have been decided by a panel.

Andy Robinson, editor of industry magazine CVG, and one of the panel of judges for the awards said: 'The Golden Joysticks are the world's longest-running games awards, but more importantly they're the only annual awards voted for by the public. Building on 2013's hugely successful revamp, which saw 10 new categories amass more than 10 million votes, we hope this year's ceremony will deliver the most relevant and exciting awards yet, and showcase the passion and innovation that's ripe across the games industry.'

Publishers Sony and Ubisoft lead the way in terms of publisher nominations, with both having more than 20 nominations between them for their games. Sony's Playstation 4 remains the top selling games console in Europe, ahead of the Xbox One.

The Most Wanted award will also be handed out to the game that fans are most looking forward to in the coming 12 months, with nominees including the next Batman game, Batman: Arkham Knight, and Rise of the Tomb Raider, the sequel to the Lara Croft franchise that was rebooted in 2013.