Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Snubbed as Helldivers 2, Star Wars Outlaws Grab 2026 Grammy Nominations

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has been left off the shortlist for this year’s Grammy’s Best Video Game Soundtrack, and nobody saw that coming.

This year’s freshly-announced lineup includes Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora – Secrets of the Spires (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). All five are squarely in the spotlight. But for many fans and industry insiders, the biggest headline is the one masterpiece missing from the list.

Chart-Topping, Critically-Acclaimed — But Not Grammy-Nominated

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 hasn’t just scored high with critics, it’s become the second-highest rated new game of the year and outright dominated the Billboard Classical charts for ten weeks straight.

Composer Lorien Testard took home the respected WSA Game Music Award this year. The publisher, Kepler, put Clair Obscur forward not just for Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games, but also for Best Song Written for Visual Media. Despite all that, the Grammys passed it over. No official explanation has been given. For now, all that’s clear is that one of the year’s most decorated game soundtracks won’t have a shot at gaming’s highest-profile music award.

This Year’s Nominees: Familiar Names, A Few Surprises

The other games in the running showcase a mix of new faces and Grammy veterans. Star Wars Outlaws brings composer duo Cody Matthew Johnson and Wilbert Roget, II into the fold. Helldivers 2 earns a surprise nomination; not for the game’s release date, but because its soundtrack dropped after launch, making it eligible within the Grammy window despite the game’s earlier debut.

Rounding out the field: Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora – Secrets of the Spires (Pinar Toprak), Indiana Jones And The Great Circle (Gordy Haab), and Sword of the Sea (Austin Wintory). Each album meets the Recording Academy’s rules, which require “original scores created specifically for, or as a companion to, a current video game or other interactive media released within the qualification period.”

This marks only the third year for the Grammy’s dedicated Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media category. The debut in 2023 saw Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarök land the first win, with composer Stephanie Economou beating out big-budget titles like Aliens: Fireteam Elite and Call of Duty: Vanguard.

The following year, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (Stephen Barton and Gordy Haab) took the trophy, outpacing heavyweights including God of War Ragnarök and Hogwarts Legacy.

The 2025 award went to Winifred Phillips’ score for Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord, holding off another round of top-tier contenders that included Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Star Wars Outlaws. Now, for 2026, the needle’s swung back to some familiar franchises, but the biggest story may be the soundtrack that didn’t make the cut.

A Young Category Already Full of Drama

The Grammy’s video game score award is still a recent addition, but it’s already building a history of upsets and public debate. The Recording Academy says the point is “recognizing excellence in score soundtrack albums” for games, with strict eligibility around both originality and release windows.

Helldivers 2’s spot on the list is itself a quirk of those eligibility rules; because the soundtrack officially launched later than the game, it was able to enter the pool for 2026. That loophole didn’t help Clair Obscur, though, leaving its creators and fans on the outside looking in, at least for this year. Expect reaction to the snub (and conversation around the future of this young category) to linger well beyond the Grammys stage.