The 2026 Grammy nominations are out, and the video game soundtrack category has everyone talking—but not for the reasons you might think. One of the year’s most critically acclaimed and chart-topping game soundtracks is nowhere to be found. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, the second-highest rated new game of the year and a Billboard Classical charts dominator for ten weeks, has been snubbed. Composer Lorien Testard even snagged the WSA Game Music Award, yet the title is mysteriously absent from the Grammy shortlist. But here’s where it gets controversial: Publisher Kepler submitted Clair Obscur for not one, but two Grammy categories—Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Best Song Written for Visual Media. So, what happened? And this is the part most people miss: The Recording Academy’s criteria for the award are specific, but do they truly capture the essence of what makes a game soundtrack exceptional? Let’s dive in.
This year’s nominees for Best Video Game Soundtrack include Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora (Pinar Toprak), Helldivers 2 (Wilbert Roget), Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (Gordy Haab), Star Wars Outlaws: Wild Card & A Pirate’s Fortune (Cody Matthew Johnson & Wilbert Roget, II), and Sword of the Sea (Austin Wintory). Helldivers 2, despite launching before the 2024–2025 eligibility window, made the cut because its soundtrack dropped later—a technicality that raises eyebrows. Meanwhile, Clair Obscur’s omission feels like a glaring oversight, especially given its critical and commercial success.
The Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media award is still relatively new, having debuted in 2023. According to the Recording Academy, it honors ‘excellence in score soundtrack albums comprised predominantly of original scores and created specifically for, or as a companion to, a current video game or other interactive media.’ Sounds straightforward, right? But here’s the kicker: Past winners like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (2023), Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (2024), and Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord (2025) have all been big-name titles. Is the Academy favoring familiarity over innovation? Or is there something more to this snub?
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s DLC score by Stephanie Economou beat out heavy hitters like Call of Duty: Vanguard and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy in 2023. The following year, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab took home the trophy, leaving God of War Ragnarök and Hogwarts Legacy in the dust. In 2025, Winifred Phillips’ score for Wizardry edged out Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Each winner is undeniably impressive, but the pattern is hard to ignore: Are smaller, more niche titles like Clair Obscur being overlooked in favor of blockbuster franchises?
This snub isn’t just about Clair Obscur—it’s about the broader conversation around what we value in game soundtracks. Is it the scale of the game, the composer’s name recognition, or the music itself? And this is where you come in: Do the Grammys truly celebrate the best in video game music, or are they playing it safe? Share your thoughts in the comments—let’s spark a debate!
