Criticism of the 2026 Grammy organization for its nominations for Best Video Game Soundtrack, as Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is not on the list.
GOTY 2025 will be very close because many deserve the prize and the winner on PCSteam Deck, PS5, Xbox and Nintendo Switch 2 may not seem fair to the rest.
The first controversy over awards has already been addressed by the 2,026 Grammy nominations for video game soundtracksas one clear favorite – Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – wasn’t even nominated.
This is something that many players, whether they like it or not, game by Sandfall Interactivethey can’t understand. There are five games entered in the category, with several surprises among them.
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THE titles nominated in the video game category for Best Original Soundtrack to compete for the award at the 2026 Grammys are the following:
Avatar: Pandora’s Frontiers – Secrets of the Towers (Pinar Toprak), Helldivers 2 (Wilbert Roget), Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (Gordy Haab), Star Wars Outlaws: Wild Card and a Pirate’s Fortune (Cody Matthew Johnson and Wilbert Roget, II) and Sword of the Sea (Austin Wintory).
THE fight for Democracy Arrowhead It earned the nomination because the OST was released much later than the game, although it remains a surprise that Expedition 33 is not among those names.
The second highest rated new game of the year also ranked No. 1 on Billboard’s classical music charts for ten weeks, and its composer – Lorien Testard – recently won the WSA Game Music Award.
And you’ll wonder: did they take this to a competition? And, as VGC recalls, the Kepler editor presented it in two categories: Best OST for video game and Best song written for audiovisual.
Although it is the third time that the Award for Best Soundtrack for Videogames and other Interactive Media appears at the Grammys, this year’s is being questioned precisely for that reason.
2026 Grammy Nominations for Video Game OSTs
In 2023 the inaugural award went to Assassin’s Creed Valhalla because Dawn of Ragnarok by Stephanie Economou beat Aliens: Fireteam Elite Call of Duty: Vanguard Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and Old World.
In 2024 it was won by Star Wars Jedi: Survivor by Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab, defeating Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, God of War Ragnarök, Hogwarts Legacy and Stray Gods: the RPG musical.
The 2025 edition was won by Winifred Phillips for Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, defeating Avatar: Pandora’s FrontiersGod of War Ragnarök: Valhalla, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Star Wars Outlaws.
It’s a shame that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 was not nominated for best OST at the 2026 Grammysbut that doesn’t mean that the turn-based RPG adventure against the Peintresse not a winner for many.
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