The award honors those that "helped the game industry advance to a better place, either through facilitating a better game community from within, or by reaching outside the industry to be an advocate for video games and help further our art."

Since the comic premiered in 1998, writer Jerry "Tycho" Holkins, artist Mike "Gabe" Krahulik and business manager Robert Khoo have founded the gamer-driven charity Child's Play and established an annual gathering of gamers in the form of the Penny Arcade Expo, on top of launching the independent-focused digital distribution platform Greenhouse and helping craft the comic-inspired Penny Arcade Adventures games.

The trio was selected by a "Choice Awards Advisory Committee" of industry figures including Ben Cousins (EA DICE), Harvey Smith (Arkane), Ray Muzyka (BioWare), and Clint Hocking (Ubisoft), with today's announcement explaining:

Holkins, Krahulik and Khoo will receive their award for their genuine, gamer-friendly empire they've built over the past decade, lovingly skewering video game culture and developers while building up a following, events and an industry-leading video game charity that help epitomize the positive elements of 'gamer spirit.'

Occurring smack dab in the middle of San Francisco's Game Developers Conference, as always, the 2010 Game Developers Choice Awards will take place on March 11.