Short answers, pulled from the story.
The D.I.C.E. Award for Game of the Year is an annual award presented by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences during the D.I.C.E. Awards. All active creative, technical, business, and affiliate members of the Academy are eligible to vote for the winning game.
GoldenEye 007, developed by Rare and published by Nintendo, won the first award at the ceremony held on the 28th of May, 1998. The award was originally called Interactive Title of the Year before being renamed Game of the Year.
The Legend of Zelda has the most nominations of any franchise, with eight in total and two wins. Call of Duty and God of War are the only other franchises to have won the award twice.
Four independent games have won the award: Journey (by thatgamecompany), Untitled Goose Game (by House House), Hades (by Supergiant Games), and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (by Sandfall Interactive). Journey was the first indie winner, at the 16th annual ceremony.
Sony Interactive Entertainment has won the most, with seven victories and thirty-one total nominations. Sony achieved back-to-back wins twice, in 2009 and 2010, and again in 2013 and 2014.
No strategy game has ever won the D.I.C.E. Award for Game of the Year, despite fourteen strategy titles being nominated. Games such as Age of Empires, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and Balatro all received nominations without winning.