For every game please have the following information ready before you begin entering your submission:
If you’re nominated we will need additional information and content in preparation for the awards. If you’re submitted on behalf of a studio or publisher, please include, if possible, the following:
The information above must be included in your submission for eligibility and consideration.
Thank you for your participation in the 19th Annual Game Audio Network Guild Awards. This year, we have continued to clarify and update submission and voting guidelines. All members in good standing are eligible to submit titles for consideration.
Eligibility
Submissions are required to have a release date between Jan 1, 2020 & Dec 31, 2020 to qualify for eligibility. If a game was released in a prior year, but has a highly significant content update (e.g. an expansion or DLC) and you wish to submit, enter a detailed description of the new content in the “Comments on Submission” Section.
Note: if a game is in “Early Access” or “Game Preview” it has NOT been officially released and therefore is NOT yet eligible for consideration.
Video Submissions:
Video entry links must be submitted as ReelCrafter or Vimeo links. If you are submitting a video, they should be relevant to the category you are submitting for. Videos should show unaltered, live gameplay footage. Please use this link to sign up for ReelCrafter.
Video links are provided to allow judges and members to view games they may not be as familiar with so they can get a better idea of how gameplay audio sounds in context of the overall game.
With the exception of the award for Best Game Trailer Audio category, game trailers or other marketing videos will NOT be accepted, since they don’t reflect audio in the context of the game itself. If a submission has such a video, the video will be removed from the submission – submitters will not be contact if their submission violates submission guidelines and is removed. Titles removed for violating submission guidelines will not be stripped of eligibility and can be considered for all categories.
If you resubmit a title for consideration, please label the resubmission clear as such in the title or description of the new submission.
For example, if you are submitting a video for “Technical and Creative Achievement in Music,” the submission video must showcase footage captured in-game. We would not accept videos for “Best Interactive Score” if you show us footage that has edits of different scenes of gameplay with your linear score layered on top. Note that you *may* overlay text or narration describing what to listen for, but the underlying video and audio should be of captured game footage.
Indie Games Category Submissions:
For the purposes of the Game Audio Network Guild Awards, “Indie Games” are works that receive the bulk of their funding via their own resources, developers, private investors, crowdsourcing, grants, internal studio funding, or association with a university, school, or nonprofit institution. Submissions may be published or unpublished, but their development may not be largely funded by a publisher.
Taken largely by from Indiecade submission eligibility.
Music of the Year is intended to award the year’s best overall game music experience. All aspects of the music are to be considered, including composition, arrangement, mix, adaptive scoring, integration, music supervision, musical direction, and context within the game. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented. Voters should NOT base their decision on the soundtrack or listening to the music outside the context of the game. This category transcends game genre, aesthetic style, production budget, and platform.
Music of the Year is awarded to the game title as a whole as well as the individual musical creatives.
Sound Design of the Year is intended to award the year’s best overall game sound design experience. All elements of the sound design are to be considered, including ambience, physical sounds, abstract sounds, foley recording, procedural, etc. plus their integration, mix, and context within the game. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented. This category transcends game genre, aesthetic style, production budget, and platform.
Sound Design of the Year is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Dialogue of the Year is intended to award the year’s best overall experience of dialogue in games. The award takes all aspects of dialogue into consideration, including written script, individual performance, ensemble performance, direction, casting, recording, integration, and in-game dialogue systems. If there is dialogue in both cinematics and during user controlled gameplay, both should be considered. Context and effectiveness within the game experience is an important criteria.
Dialogue of the Year is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Best Audio for an Indie Game is intended to award the year’s best overall game audio experience in a game produced by an indepedent game studio. All audio elements, including sound design, music, voice performance, plus their integration, mix, and context within the game are to be considered. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented.
Best Audio for an Indie Game is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Best Music for an Indie Game is intended to award the year’s best overall game music experience in a game produced by an indepedent game studio. All aspects of the music are to be considered, including composition, arrangement, mix, adaptive scoring, integration, music supervision, musical direction, and context within the game. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented. Voters should NOT base their decision on the soundtrack or listening to the music outside the context of the game.
Best Music for an Indie Game is awarded to the game title as a whole as well as the individual musical creatives.
Best Sound Design for an Indie Game is intended to award the year’s best overall game sound design experience for a game produced by an independent game studio. All elements of the sound design are to be considered, including ambience, physical sounds, abstract sounds, foley recording, procedural, etc. plus their integration, mix, and context within the game. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented.
Best Sound Design for an Indie Game is awarded to the game title as a whole.
This category is intended to award the year’s best overall experience of spoken performance or dialogue in a game produced by an independent game studio. The award takes all aspects of dialogue into consideration, including written script, individual performance, ensemble performance, direction, casting, recording, integration, and in-game dialogue systems. If there is dialogue in both cinematics and during user controlled gameplay, both should be considered. Context and effectiveness within the game experience is an important criteria.
Best Dialogue for an Indie Game is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Best Audio for a Casual or Social Game is intended to award the year’s best overall game audio experience in a casual or social game. All audio elements, including sound design, music, voice performance, plus their integration, mix, and context within the game are to be considered. All aspects of the game, from cinematics, all gameplay areas, to UI, should be represented. Casual or social game categories are only for game titles that embody all or a combination of simpler rules, shorter sessions, less learned skill than long-form games, and/or require social interaction between players as a core game experience. This category transcends game genre, aesthetic style, production budget, and platform.
Best Audio for a Casual of Social Game is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Best Main Theme is intended to award the year’s best thematic composition originating from a video game. Voters should be mindful to judge based on the overall excellence of the piece, considering all aspects including the strength of the composition, production, mix, and aesthetic in regards to its creative context within the game. There are no stylistic or ensemble limitations: orchestral and non-orchestral music should be judged equally considering the sound palette and style intended. (e.g. a major chord will sound awesome with a 100-piece orchestra but it doesn’t make it “better” than a smaller ensemble, rock or electronic style).
Best Main Theme is awarded to the individual musical creatives.
Best Original Song is intended to award the year’s best original song originating from and written explicitly for a video game. All aspects of the song including writing, composition, performance, production, mixing etc. are to be considered. The song recording is to be judged outside the context of the game, but how well it complements the game in general should be considered. A song here is defined as a composition of lyrics and music, often with a verse/chorus structure.
Best Original Song is awarded to the individual musical creatives.
“Best Original Soundtrack Album is intended to award the year’s best commercially released soundtrack of music from a video game. Voters should think of this as the ‘best music collection’ and judge based on how it stands on it’s own as a collection of music and/or a listening experience.
Best Original Soundtrack Album is awarded to the game title as a whole as well as the individual musical creatives and/or musical artist(s).
Best Game Foley is intended to award the year’s best sound design foley experience for a video game. Only elements of the sound design to be considered are any and all aspects that include or involve foley recording and their integration, mix, and context within the game.
Best Game Foley is awarded to the game title as a whole.
Best Cinematic & Cutscene Audio is intended to award the year’s best cinematic & cutscene audio, which is defined as linear game-controlled story elements that have little to no player interaction. All audio elements, including sound design, music, voice, and mix are to be considered. The overall effectiveness of how these elements work together, how they support the narrative, and how they complement the visuals, should also be considered.
Best Cinematic & Cutscene Audio is awarded to the game title as a whole.
A special judging panel will be created to look at and curate submissions, as well as select the winner. This panel should include those that have published writings about game audio, include people from game audio education and academia.
Best Game Audio Article or Publication is awarded to the individual contributors.
Best Physical Soundtrack Release is intended to award the year’s best commercially released soundtrack of music from a video game. Voters should only judge based on how it stands as a packaged product visually representing the musical source material and game title. Voters should consider the release on design, visual and creative aesthetic, creative use of medium, and context of the music and game title.
Best Physical Soundtrack Release is awarded to the game title as a whole as well as the label, publisher, individual musical creatives, and/or musical artist(s).
The submission requirements for Best Physical Soundtrack Release is a visual look book of the physical release that showcases the design, visual and creative aesthetic, creative use of medium, and context of the music and game title. Provide a link to show that the soundtrack album is available publicly for purchase (or proof if it is sold out). The soundtrack must have been formally released (digitally or physically) during the calendar year with a published released date. Please note that the 5 final nominees for this category will be required to supply a copy of the release to the awards committee to validate and confirm accuracy of all submitted visuals. This category does not require a Reelcrafter or Vimeo media link.
Original, newly released soundtracks of a previously released game (if the physical soundtrack was released during the eligibility period but the game was release in a previous year), and re-releases/re-masters with significant changes to design aesthetic and/or additional musical content (e.g. a “deluxe” release) will be considered. Best Physical Soundtrack Release is not limited to the first SKU release.
Best Game Trailer Audio is intended to award the year’s best overall video game trailer audio experience. All audio elements, including sound design, music, voice performance, mix, and context to the game’s overal asethetic are to be considered. This category transcends game genre, aesthetic style, production budget, and platform.
Best Game Trailer Audio is awarded to the game title as a whole.
The submission requirement for Best Game Trailer Audio is one video containing one trailer, no longer than 6 minutes, showcasing all disciplines of the audio (music, sound design, voice, mix) within the context of the game. Please do NOT include music soundtrack links with your submission.
A special judging panel will be created to look at and curate submissions, as well as select the winner. The Best Video Game Audio Technlogy award recognizes a substantial, unique or innovative technology that has a direct impact in game music, sound design or dialogue. This category is not necessarily limited to technologies that run “in the game.”
The Submission for Best Video Game Audio Technology should include a link to the product page and a description of what innovation(s) make this technology worthy of submission. Note that technologies must be publicaly available; a proprietary ‘in house’ tool or technology is not eligible. This category does not require a Reelcrafter or Vimeo media link. Please use the Media Link section of the submission form to provide a link to the product page and description.
The Game Audio Network Guild was formed in 2002 by driven industry professionals with a vision to assist those in the game audio industry to share, continually improve, and evolve their craft, and to inform both the overall game industry and enthusiasts about not only excellence in that craft but fair treatment of professionals.
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