A sign of the ever-changing and expanding purview of the GRAMMY Awards, God of War Ragnarok‘s soundtrack makes up another entrant into the field for Best Immersive Audio Album.
God of War GRAMMY Nomination Only the 3rd Ever Gaming Nod
In and of itself, the fact that God of War is up for a GRAMMY in the first place is a win for the industry at large. Before the upcoming awards, just three titles achieved the same thing: Christopher Tin for Civilization IV in Best Instrumental Arrangement, Austin Wintory for Journey‘s score in Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media and Charlie Rosen & Jake Silverman for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella, for “Meta Knight’s Revenge” from Kirby Super Star.
Unlike some of the other projects the Ragnarok score shares its category with, the soundtrack arrives at the GRAMMYs following with dozens of wins already. The game itself was in the mix for plenty of the gaming world’s highest honors. At every awards show the soundtrack competed, it won—including Audio Achievement at the British Academy Games Awards & D.I.C.E. Awards, Best Score and Music & Best Audio Design at The Game Awards, and Best Audio at the Game Developers Choice Awards.
Elsewhere at February’s proceedings, Ragnarok is vying for one of the newest awards, Best Score/Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media. Only making its debut last year, it makes up a five-deep field alongside Modern Warfare II, Hogwarts Legacy, Stray Gods and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Looking to that category proves instructive for project lead Bear McReary specifically, as his direction on the score for Call of Duty Vanguard earned him a nomination in that inaugural presentation.
Bear McReary on the Brink of Mainstream Recognition with Sequel Score
The Ragnarok score continues the legacy of its predecessor (also scored by McReary), which achieved similar industry acclaim following its 2018 release. There’s understandably a ton of shared DNA between both projects, with an emphasis on recruiting Norse & Gaelic talent to match the Viking setting of the games. Where the Ragnarok score diverges, though, is via an additional shot of star power. Irish superstar Hozier made an appearance on its lead single, “Blood on the Snow.” To elucidate how it is the best the gaming world put forth over the past year, Hozier & McReary led off the Game Awards in 2022 with a performance of the track.
For a mode of entertainment where total captivation is often so crucial, the gaming industry couldn’t have found a better representation for Best Immersive Audio Album than the Ragnarok soundtrack. While all those involved are no doubt waiting with bated breath for the results of February’s awards, they wasted no time jumping on other projects. McReary particularly has been plenty busy scoring the Rings of Power Amazon Prime series in the time since Ragnarok released. To check out everything the multi-time award winner is involved with, head to his official website.
