GANG announces nominations for 10th annual awards in game audio

The Game Audio Network Guild (which translates to the convenient acronym of GANG) has announced its nominees for the 10th annual GANG Awards to be held at GDC, honoring the best music and audio in interactive entertainment over the last year. You can see all of the nominees in the press release after the break. As you might imagine, Battlefield 3, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, and Portal 2 are all nominated, all of which boasted very excellent and memorable aural experiences.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, however, leads the pack in nominations, with nine total, including Audio, Music, and Sound Design of the Year. Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary also got a nod for Best Soundtrack Album, despite the fact that most of the music is as old as the awards ceremony itself. And while most of the choices are obviously worthy, there's one more worth mentioning: Bastion was only nominated for one category, for Best Audio in a Casual/Indie/Social Game. Shame that it's relegated to just that category -- <a aiotitle="Build that Wall" "="" data-cke-saved-href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8cELTdtw6U" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8cELTdtw6U">"Build that Wall"</a> is one of the best listens our ears have had all year, video game-related or otherwise.

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GAME AUDIO NETWORK GUILD (G.A.N.G.) ANNOUNCES FINAL NOMINEES FOR 10TH ANNUAL G.A.N.G. AWARDS

Awards Ceremony to Take Place Thursday, March 8th, 2011 During Game Developers Conference in San Francisco


LOS ANGELES, CA (February 8th, 2012) – Celebrating its 10 year anniversary, the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.), the non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and recognition of game audio, is proud to announce the finalists for the 10th Annual G.A.N.G. Awards to honor outstanding creative, technical and artistic audio achievement in the world of interactive entertainment.

Voted and judged upon by the game audio industry and members of G.A.N.G., the finalists represent an array of the best audio in gaming from 2011. A 70 person Advisory Committee helps in deciding each of the final nominees which includes hundreds of hours of research, listening, watching and playing. The standouts for nominations this year include Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception with 9 nominations. Other notable multiple nominees include Battlefield 3, L.A. Noire, Portal 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

Final voting has begun and the final winners are chosen by the entire membership of the G.A.N.G. organization. Over 2,000 people representing over 30 countries have signed up as members of G.A.N.G. since its inception in 2002. "It's hard to believe how far game audio has come in a mere decade since the organization was started," said Tommy Tallarico, G.A.N.G. Founder, CEO and Chairman. "The talented audio folks in this industry have literally been rewriting the history books in terms of quality and historic significance. 2012 is going to once again be a great year for everyone as game audio continues to surpass expectations, just hearing the quality in all the nominees each year helps to confirm this." G.A.N.G. President Paul Lipson added, "I think being around 10 years says a lot about this organization and the dedication that people in the industry feel towards it. Spotlighting the hard work and talented game audio individuals from around the world has always been a major focus of G.A.N.G. and something we pride ourselves on. A big congratulations to all of the final nominees, it was a difficult task for everyone involved considering the level of talent currently in the game audio field."

The winners will be announced at the 10th Annual G.A.N.G. Awards ceremony being held on Thursday, March 8th, 2011 in San Francisco, CA during the Game Developers Conference.

AUDIO OF THE YEAR
Battlefield 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Dead Space 2
Gears of War 3
Portal 2
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

MUSIC OF THE YEAR
Batman: Arkham City
InFamous 2
Kinect Disneyland Adventures
L.A. Noire
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

SOUND DESIGN OF THE YEAR
Battlefield 3
Forza Motorsport 4
Gears of War 3
NCAA Football 12
Portal 2
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST SOUNDTRACK ALBUM
Batman: Arkham City
Dead Space 2
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary
Star Wars: The Old Republic
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST INTERACTIVE SCORE
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Dead Space 2
Kinect Disneyland Adventures
Portal 2
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST HANDHELD AUDIO
Death Rally HD
Infinity Blade II
Monster Hunter 3G
Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D
Super Mario 3D Land

BEST AUDIO IN A CASUAL/INDIE/SOCIAL GAME
Bastion
Conspiracy
Monday Night Combat
Orcs Must Die
Star Wars: Clone War Adventures
WindUp Knight

BEST CINEMATIC/CUT-SCENE AUDIO
Battlefield 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Crysis 2
Gears of War 3
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST DIALOGUE
Battlefield 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
L.A. Noire
Portal 2
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST ORIGINAL INSTRUMENTAL
"Lacrimosa" - Dead Space 2
"Main Theme" - Deus Ex: Human Revolution
"GameWrapper" - Kinect Disneyland Adventures
"Pirate Dance" - Kinectimals Gold
"Glory, The Galactic Republic" - Star Wars: The Old Republic
"Small Beginnings" - Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST ORIGINAL VOCAL - CHORAL
"Main Theme" - Batman: Arkham City
"Storm Clouds Over Stalingrad" – Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad
"Guardians Theme" - RIFT
"Clash of Destiny" - Star Wars: The Old Republic
"Main Theme" - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

BEST ORIGINAL VOCAL - POP
"Rogue Heart" - Dragon Age II
"Torched Song" - L.A. Noire
"Victoria's Lab" - LittleBigPlanet 2
"Wabby Wabbo" - Plants Vs. Zombies (PS3/XBOX360)
"Want You Gone" - Portal 2
"Kayfoundo Naweea (Hungry Eyes)" - Star Wars: The Old Republic

BEST AUDIO MIX
Batman: Arkham City
Battlefield 3
Crysis 2
L.A. Noire
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

BEST USE OF LICENSED MUSIC
Kinect Disneyland Adventures
LittleBigPlanet 2
MLB 11: The Show
Rocksmith
Shift 2: Unleashed - Need for Speed
Stacking

BEST GAME AUDIO ARTICLE, PUBLICATION OR BROADCAST
Designing the Boot Sound for the Original XBOX
Game Developer Magazine - "Three Erroneous Conceits"
Mixing as Part of the Music Composing Process
Sound Effects Transformation: From This to That
The Use of Voice in Portal 2

Other presentations at the Awards Ceremony will include the Rookie of the Year award, the Lifetime Achievement Award, the G.A.N.G. Recognition Awards, Student/Apprentice competition winners and the G.A.N.G. Distinguished Service Awards.