Videogames will no longer be second-class citizens when it comes to the Grammy Awards. The Recording Academy has revealed that it will put videogames on the same level as television and film by adding them to the descriptors of four awards. Prior to the change, games were lumped in with “other visual media” while movies and TV got top billing, which only helped to discourage videogame music from being submitted.
“I think this could be viewed as a first step in the direction of video games getting their own category,” The Recording Academy’s Bill Freimuth told IndustryGamers. “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 acknowledges that film, TV and games can stand side by side and be independently recognized,” added Electronic Arts’ Steve Schnur. “Hopefully, this will create an even playing field when people vote next year. I expect there to be a tidal wave of submissions from the game industry.”
