Kotaku was lucky enough to be added to the list of judges for the 2007 Game Critics Awards this year. The E3 judges, there's 36 of us, ramble the show floor and spend tons of time leading up to the show looking for what will end up being the best games of the year's expo.

It's a challenging task, and one meant to reflect each of the judge's publications, not just their personal views. The final vote for the 18 or so categories is due tomorrow and we just wrapped up. But before we lay Kotaku's hard-argued votes on your, I wanted to give the readers a chance to have their own say. Hit the jump to check out the categories and descriptions and then vote in comments.

A couple of rules: For most categories the games had to be playable. To nominate any games in a category you had to nominate at least three, but no more than five. This is true of all but the final two "special commendation categories." Each game can only be nominated in one "genre category". The votes Kotaku casts ( and remember we've already made up our minds) will be worth points toward the final decision by the Game Critics as a whole. Since each category can have up to five nominations, the first choice is worth five points and so on.

I've always viewed the Best of E3 awards with a bit of skepticism, mostly because I had no idea how they worked. Now that I do, I can say that they're not a trivial affair and that the games that earn them, probably deserve them.

Best of Show:
In a nutshell, the "best of show" is an award to reflect the one thing you were talking about on the plane and to your friends when you returned home. Open to ANYTHING on the floor or off — you can nominate a game, a specific company's booth, a new console/handheld system, a piece of hardware, etc. In a nutshell, what was the buzz of the show...so long as it was playable.

Best Original Game:
Open to ANY game on ANY platform, regardless of genre. Game should be nominated for ambition, newness, and creativity, with a bias towards actual gameplay innovation. (Don't fall for the trap of a "cool concept" that sounds innovative but may not turn out to be a very good game). Typically this award goes to an original game series (Previous winners include: Spore, Full Spectrum Warrior, Psychonauts, Majestic and Black & White). Please do not nominate a sequel or franchise extension unless it's mind-blowingly new.

Best Game, Console:

Best Game, Portable:

Best Game, PC:

Best Peripheral/Hardware:
This can include console systems, handheld/mobile gaming devices, graphics cards, sound cards, and other peripheral devices.

Action: First-person shooters and other fast-paced games that focus on enemy combat as the primary means of advancing through the game. In the past, games nominated in this category include: Half-Life, Halo, Call of Duty, Unreal, etc.

Action/Adventure: Third-person action variants where you collect items, solve puzzles, possibly work in teams and also shoot enemies. In the past, games nominated in this category include: Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, Ninja Gaiden, Ratchet & Clank, etc.

Fighting: Games focused around hand-to-hand combat against another opponent (or group of opponents). Past examples include Dead or Alive 3, Virtua Fighter, etc.

Role Playing: Games primarily focused around character advancement - Including single-player games and online games (i.e. massively multiplayer games).

Racing: Any racing game - past examples include Mario Kart, Gran Turismo, Burnout, etc.

Simulation: Games that simulate something (with the exception of racing). Past examples include The Sims, Full Spectrum Warrior, Spore, etc.

Sports: Includes all the major sports and also underground/extreme sports.

Strategy: Real-time strategy and turn-based strategy games. Past examples include Command & Conquer, Starcraft, etc.

Social/Casual/Puzzle: A catch-all for games that don't fit into other categories - puzzle games like WarioWare, EyeToy games, music games like Guitar Hero, etc.

OTHER CATEGORIES
Online Multiplayer: A game with a unique online component - it can also have single-player support. You can nominate a game in this category and also in its appropriate genre category.

Special Commendations (sound & graphics): These work differently than the other categories. You have three nominations to reward outstanding graphics and sound in games shown at E3 — This is the only group of categories where non-playable games are eligible. Anything mentioned on over 50% of the nomination lists wins a special commendation.

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