Helldivers 2 Edges Out Expedition 33 and Death Stranding 2 to Nab a Grammy Nomination
The 68th Grammy nominations just dropped, and Helldivers 2 has stormed the Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media—a category many expected to be led by Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Death Stranding 2.
Well, this is unexpected. The 68th Annual Grammys dropped their nominations, and in the video game score category, Helldivers 2 sneaked in. Yes, Helldivers 2. Over Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Death Stranding 2. Let me explain how that happened, because it hinges on a very nerdy rule quirk.
Why Helldivers 2 is in the mix at all
The show is set for February 1, 2026, and the eligibility window runs from August 31, 2024 through August 30, 2025. Helldivers 2, the live service shooter from Arrowhead Game Studios with a score by Wilbert Roget II, actually launched back in February 2024. Outside the window, right?
Here is the twist: the Grammys go by the soundtrack album release date, not the game release date. Helldivers 2 did not put out its official soundtrack album until September 20, 2024, which slides it neatly into this year’s eligibility period. Call it a technicality, call it savvy timing, but that is why it is competing.
The nominees
Helldivers 2 is up against a stacked slate, including some of the biggest titles of the last year:
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora - Secrets of the Spires - Pinar Toprak
- Helldivers 2 - Wilbert Roget II
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle - Gordy Haab
- Star Wars Outlaws: Wild Card & A Pirate's Fortune - Cody Matthew Johnson & Wilbert Roget II
- Sword of the Sea - Austin Wintory
The snubs that are going to drive people nuts
Two heavy hitters are nowhere to be found: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Death Stranding 2. Expedition 33, composed by Lorien Testard, has basically lived at the front of the Game of the Year conversation. Even folks who bounced off parts of the game have been raving about the music. Fans have been shouting out tracks like 'Goblu' for that killer synth transition, and honestly, they are not wrong.
Death Stranding 2 missing here is another head-scratcher. Hideo Kojima’s sequel, with music by Ludvig Forssell, layers in live vocals and guitars and nods to the late Ryan Karazija of Low Roar. Forssell himself has called the DS2 score his
"piece de resistance."
People have been pointing to wild deep cuts too, like an optional boss theme that still goes absurdly hard. And yet, no nomination.
So, is Helldivers 2 undeserving?
No. The soundtrack slaps, and Wilbert Roget II does great work. This category is just young and super competitive. It debuted in 2023 to properly spotlight game music as, you know, legitimate art, and it has been getting sharper every year. Fun note: this is not Roget’s first time here; he was nominated last year as well for his work on Star Wars Outlaws.
The bottom line
Helldivers 2 getting in thanks to the soundtrack-album timing rule is one of those award-season quirks that makes your eyebrow twitch. Meanwhile, two of 2025’s defining scores sitting out is going to light up comment sections all week.
Who would you have put on the ballot? Expedition 33? DS2? Something else entirely? Drop your picks below.