GANG Award nominations in, Red Dead Redemption and Dante's Inferno score big

The Game Audio Network Guild has revealed its nominee list for the upcoming GANG Awards, with Red Dead Redemption scooping ten nominations and Dante's Inferno an impressive seven.

Other notable repeat entries include Heavy Rain; Battlefield: Bad Company 2; BioShock 2 and God of War 2.

One of the most under-appreciated games industry events, the GANG awards ceremony kicks off on March 3 at GDC San Francisco.

In its ninth year, the awards recognise excellence in game audio across a diverse range of categories, some more esoteric than others.

The full list of nominees is below, thanks to Joystiq.

AUDIO OF THE YEAR
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Dante's Inferno
God of War III
Heavy Rain
Red Dead Redemption

MUSIC OF THE YEAR
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
Bioshock 2
Dante's Inferno
Heavy Rain
James Bond 007: Blood Stone
Red Dead Redemption

SOUND DESIGN OF THE YEAR
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Bioshock 2
Dante's Inferno
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
God of War III
Red Dead Redemption

BEST SOUNDTRACK ALBUM
Bioshock 2
Dante's Inferno
Halo: Reach
Mass Effect 2
Red Dead Redemption
Video Games Live - Level 2

BEST INTERACTIVE SCORE
Dante's Inferno
God of War III
Halo: Reach
Heavy Rain
James Bond 007: Blood Stone
Red Dead Redemption

BEST HANDHELD AUDIO
God of War: Ghost of Sparta
Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge
Monster Hunter Portable 3
Ni no Kuni: Shikkoku no Madoshi
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands

BEST CINEMATIC/CUT-SCENE AUDIO
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
God of War III
Medal of Honor
Red Dead Redemption
StarCraft II
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm

BEST DIALOGUE
Bioshock 2
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
God of War III
Mafia II
Medal of Honor
Red Dead Redemption

BEST ORIGINAL INSTRUMENTAL
"Athens Harbour Chase" - James Bond 007: Blood Stone
"Ethan Mars Theme" - Heavy Rain
"Main Theme" - Red Dead Redemption
"Northern Grasslands" - Age of Conan: Rise of the Godslayer
"The Palace Gates" - Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (Wii)

BEST ORIGINAL VOCAL - CHORAL
"Alice's Theme" - Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland
"Dante's Theme" - Dante's Inferno
"Hymn" - Halo: Reach
"Invincible" - World of Warcraft: Cataclysm
"Overture" - God of War III
"Redemption" - Dante's Inferno

BEST ORIGINAL VOCAL - POP
"Dagomba" - Just Dance 2
"Dead Man's Gun" - Red Dead Redemption
"Far Away" - Red Dead Redemption
"I'll Take It All" - James Bond 007: Blood Stone
"No Death In Love" - Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
"The Peri" (Zahara's Theme) - Prince of Persia The Forgotten Sands

BEST USE OF MULTI-CHANNEL SURROUND
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Call of Duty: Black-Ops
Crackdown 2
Fable III
Halo: Reach
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
Transformers: War for Cybertron

BEST USE OF LICENSED MUSIC
Bioshock 2
Civilization V
DJ Hero 2
Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock
Mafia II
Rock Band 3

BEST GAME AUDIO ARTICLE, PUBLICATION OR BROADCAST
APM Film & Television Music Podcast
"Composing the Music of Star Wars: The Old Republic"
"From the Shadows of Film Sound: Cinematic Production & Creative Process in Video Game Audio"
"Recording Firearms Explosions"
"The Weight of Silence - How Silence Can Indicate a Character's Importance"