World of Warcraft, Raph Koster to be honoured at GDC Online awards

World of Warcraft will be inducted into the Choice Online Awards Hall of Fame at GDC Online 2012.

GDC Online organisers have chosen to honour World of Warcraft for its domination of the MMO sphere, saying it sets the standard for the genre, and for 'propelling MMOs into the mainstream'. It joins seminal MMORPGs Everquest and Ultima Online.

"As the title nears its eighth anniversary, World of Warcraft remains one of the top-rated PC games of all time and continues to thrive globally with a massive and passionate subscriber base. With three released expansion packs since launch and a fourth, Mists of Pandaria, around the corner, World of Warcraft is one of the most profitable and popular entertainment franchises in history, a pop culture fixture that is sure to transcend generations," a statement noted.

Meanwhile, another MMO favourite will be honoured - Raph Koster. The industry legend as a key creative force behind Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies, and will receive the Online Game Legend Award.

Koster, a popular lecturer and author, has served in many aspects of game development, from artist to programmer to designer and everything in between, and is well respected in industry circles not just for his impressive and influential portfolio but also for his work on ethics in gaming, community management and design. He's vice president of creative design at Playdom, which acquired his startup Metaplace in 2010.

Koster and members of the Blizzard Entertainment World of Warcraft team will accept their awards at the third annual Game Developers Choice Online Awards on October 10 in Austin, Texas. The awards are part of GDC Online, which runs October 9 through 11.