While a good game will often get top merits for good graphics, gameplay, and storyline, we can't forget to mention one other aspect that rounds out this winning combo: good sounds. With that in mind, the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.) announces this year's G.A.N.G. Awards winners.

The 5th Annual awarding were concluded last Tuesday, March 8, with candidates being selected by members of the game audio industry, and G.A.N.G.'s own crop of 1,200 members.

Xbox 360 fans will be very delighted to know that Gears of War can happily lancer-up another notch in its growing list of achievements, as Epic's runaway hit game for the 360 bags "Audio of the Year," followed closely by Call of Duty 3, Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, Tomb Raider: Legend, and Splinter Cell: Double Agent.

Moving on to specific gaming personalities, we find G.A.N.G. giving Nintendo composer Koji Kondo a much-deserved "Lifetime Achievement" award, even as they hand out a "Rookie of the Year" award to upcoming composer Christopher Tin, whose musical score "Baba Yetu" for the Civilization IV game wins the "Best original vocal - choral" award. Read on for the rest of the finalists (winners are in bold):

Audio of the year

• Call of Duty 3
• Gears of War
• Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent
• Tomb Raider: Legend

• Dreamfall
• Destroy All Humans! 2
• Hitman: Blood Money
• Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II
• Tomb Raider: Legend

• Call of Duty 3
• Gears of War
• Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
• Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent

• Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
• Need For Speed: Carbon
• Red Steel
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent
• Tomb Raider: Legend

• Earthworm Jim Anthology
• Halo 2: Volume Two
• Hitman: Blood Money
• Psychonauts
• Sly Cooper III: Honor Among Thieves

• 24
• Call of Duty 3
• Dead Rising
• Scarface: The World Is Yours
• Tomb Raider: Legend
  

• Gears of War
• Half-Life 2: Episode 1
• Lost Planet: Extreme Condition
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent
• The Godfather

• Assassin's Creed (website)
• Cartoon Networks Re-animated: Fit to be Pie'd
• Happy Feet
• Hexic
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent (Website)

• "Theme" - Dreamfall
• "Gates of Stonehelm" - Dark Messiah of Might and Magic
• “Titan” - ParaWorld
• "Main Theme" - Star Trek: Legacy
• "Main Title" - Hitman: Blood Money
• "Titan" - Paraworld

• "All My Life" - Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
• "Angel's Heaven" - Red Steel
• "Dr. Kunkle's Funnkle Cake" - Thrillville
• "Let It Go" - NBA 07
• "Shadow Song" - SpellForce 2

• "Ajikistan Theme" - SOCOM: Combined Assault
• "Apocalypse" - Hitman: Blood Money
• "Baba Yetu" - Civilization IV
• "Elven Morning" - Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II
• "Main Theme" - Heroes of Might and Magic V

• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories
• Guitar Hero II
• Need for Speed: Carbon
• Scarface: The World is Yours
• The Godfather

• "All Along the Watchtower" - Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
• "Amazing Grace" - Left Behind: Eternal Forces
• Jaws: Unleashed
• Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams
• The Godfather

• Every Extended Extra
• Guitar Hero II
• Loco Roco
• Lumines II
• Singstar: Rocks

• Black
• Call of Duty 3
• Gears of War
• Rainbow Six: Vegas
• Splinter Cell: Double Agent
• Tomb Raider: Legend

• "2006 GDC Audio Boot Camp" by Scott Selfon & others*
• "Musical Symmetry" by Jesse Harlin, Audio Column - Game Developer Magazine
• "Settling the Score" by Daniel Kayser - Hardcore Gamer Magazine
• "SiN Episodes: Emergence music study" by Zak Belica - Music4Games.Net
• "Play On: The Composers Behind Today's Game Music" by Russ Pitts - The Escapist

• Christopher Tin
  

• Audiokinetic - Wwise
• Gene Semel
  

• Koji Kondo

• Scott Gershin
• David Murrant
• Scott Selfon

• Sound Design: "Necromancing," by  Vince Iannelli
• Music Comp: "Anura" by JJ Lee