Short answers, pulled from the story.
PaRappa the Rapper won the first D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Game Design at the 1st Annual Interactive Achievement Awards in 1997-1998. Its competitors included Dungeon Keeper, Final Fantasy VII, and GoldenEye 007.
The D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Game Design recognizes the title that most effectively combines interactive and non-interactive elements into a cohesive gameplay experience. Jurors consider balanced system design, how mechanics connect to overall aesthetic direction, level layout, challenge flow, progression systems, interface design, and social game mechanics. The award is presented to the Lead Designer or Design Director.
Only ten Game Design winners have also won Game of the Year, including The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Hades, Elden Ring, Baldur's Gate 3, and Astro Bot. Three Game Design winners were not even nominated for Game of the Year: Grand Theft Auto III, World of Goo, and Baba Is You. Conversely, games like Diablo II, Call of Duty, and Untitled Goose Game won Game of the Year without being Game Design finalists.
Nintendo's development teams, operating variously as Nintendo EAD, SPD, and EPD, have won the D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Game Design five times, more than any other developer. Nintendo is the only developer to have won the award more than once, with 14 total nominations.
The Legend of Zelda is the most nominated franchise in D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Game Design history, with six nominations and three wins. It is the only franchise to have won more than once.
Blue Prince, developed by Dogubomb and published by Raw Fury, is the most recent winner of the D.I.C.E. Award for Outstanding Achievement in Game Design, taking the prize at the 29th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards.