The University of Santo Tomas (UST) Minecraft won the "Project of the Year" award in the first-ever AcadArena Awards.
The project was cited for "putting the spotlight on gaming as an avenue for creativity and expression."
UST Minecraft recreated the 21.5-hectare campus in the sandbox video game in 2020 to conduct its Welcome Walk to tour for 12,000 freshmen as face-to-face classes were prohibited due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
The virtual campus was built by a team of over 80 students.
Ateneo de Manila University and Technological University of the Philippines were runners-up for the award.
READ MORE: Missing their second home, students recreate Ateneo in Minecraft
Minecraft is a sandbox video game which lets players explore a blocky, procedurally-generated 3D world with infinite terrain, and may discover and extract raw materials, craft tools, and items, and build structures.
The video game is playable on multiple platforms, including tablet, game consoles, laptop, or personal computer.
AcadArena is a national campus esports program in the Philippines focusing on three pillars: competition, education, and experience.