Score as in music, not review score.

The nominees for the 2026 Grammy Awards were revealed on Friday, November 7th. Included in the nominees is once again the category dedicated to the best score for a video game and other interactive media. This is the fourth year for this category at the Grammys.

This year's nominees are a bit odd, to say the least. There are a few titles included that weren't actually released within the nomination window. Instead, the games in question either had their soundtracks released within the window or the games had a new expansion release within that nomination window.

Helldivers 2 was released back on February 8, 2024. However, the soundtrack for the game wasn't released until September 20, 2024. This means that it falls within the nomination window for the 2026 Grammys, which runs from August 31, 2024 through to August 30, 2025. In the case of games such as Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and Star Wars Outlaws, both of these titles had story expansion release within that nomination window. It's the score for these expansions that are being nominated, not the score for the base game which released prior to the nomination window for these Grammys.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 not being nominated at all is certainly a choice.

As noted, this is the fourth year for this video game focused category at the Grammys. Previous years winners include Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarok by Stephanie Economou (2023), Star Wars Jedi: Survivor by Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab (2024), and Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord by Winifred Phillips (2025).

The 2026 Grammy Awards will air on February 1, 2026.