BioWare co-founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk will be given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 13th annual Game Developers Choice Awards, to be held during the 2103 Game Developers Conference this March, event organizers announced today.
The awards ceremony will be held on Wednesday, March 27 in the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco. The ceremony, open to all GDC attendees, will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will be hosted by Double Fine Productions CEO Tim Schafer.
The "BioWare Doctors" will be honored for their critically acclaimed contributions to the industry and the role-playing genre, with published titles including Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, and the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series. Muzyka and Zeschuk were chosen to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award by the GDCA Advisory Committee, which is made up of industry veterans including Valve's Doug Lombardi, Cerny Games president Mark Cerny, Arkane Studios designer Harvey Smith, Playdom vice president Raph Koster, Microsoft's Chris Charla and PopCap co-founder John Vechey.
BioWare's RPG Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic won several awards at the 2004 GDCAs, including the award for overall Best Game. That same year Muzyka and Zeschuk received the International Game Developers Association Ambassador Award for their contributions to the development community. MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic was also honored with Best New Online Game at the 2012 GDC Online Awards.
"The BioWare Doctors are truly a unique breed," said GDC general manager Meggan Scavio in a press release. "Not only have they created some of the most emotionally-engaging and beloved games ever made, they are two of the most passionate, engaging, just all-around nice guys anyone could be fortunate enough to meet. Anyone, be they a longtime colleague or a fan who's met them only once at an event like GDC can tell you they treat everyone like a friend, and I am so pleased we can show them our deep appreciation this year with this award.
"There's no denying the deep footprint Ray and Greg have made, and how much their dedication and leadership will be missed in our industry," she added. "We're proud to honor them with the Lifetime Achievement Award as they parlay into their next careers."
The Doctors left BioWare in September 2012 to pursue other endeavors. Zeschuk has started The Beer Diaries, a web show about beer, while Muzyka has chosen to lend his time to social impact investing.