The Grammys now officially recognize "video game music" in the amended descriptors of four awards, revealed The Recording Academy.
"I think this could be viewed as a first step in the direction of video games getting their own category," said Bill Freimuth, vice president of awards for The Recording Academy. "Many people from the game community have been asking us to create a special category for games over the years, but the main reason we haven’t is because we have received very few entries from game publishers."
This news will surely please top-notch video game composers like Inon Zur, who received a Hollywood Music in Media Award in 2009 for Best Original Video Game Song (Dragon Age: Origins – "I Am the One").
The four awards amended by the Academy are:
The Music for Visual Media (Motion, Television, Video Game Music, or Other Visual Media)
Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media (Motion, Television, Video Game Music, or Other Visual Media)
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (Motion, Television, Video Game Music, or Other Visual Media)
Best Song Written for Visual Media (Motion, Television, Video Game Music, or Other Visual Media)
Previously, ‘video game music’ was relegated to ‘other visual media.’
Christopher Tin’s "Baba Yetu" (Civilization IV) was the first video game composition to receive a Grammy — it won "Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists" at this year’s 53rd Annual Grammy Awards show.