Howard was the 16th recipient of a Game Developers Conference Lifetime Achievement Award. The magazine "GamePro" named him among the "Top 20 Most Influential People in Gaming over the Last 20 Years". Howard also received the D.I.C.E. Award for "Best Game Director" in 2012 and 2016. In 2014, he was awarded the Lara of Honor, a lifetime achievement award from Germany. In 2013, "IGN" listed Howard 70th in a ranking of "The Top 100 Game Creators of All Time". He was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences in 2017. In 2020, Howard received the 2020 Develop Star award for "outstanding achievements and contribution to the industry".