A scoring contest for games rather than film: you get gameplay footage from a real indie game and a developer brief, and score it so the music changes with what the player does — calm while exploring, tense when an enemy appears — then tell the judges which moment triggers which change. No game engine, no implementation; the page is explicit that “if you can score a film, you can do this.” Two games are on offer this edition. Registration closes October 30, 2026 and the finished cue is due November 4 at 8 p.m. CET; the date on this card is the registration close, because after it a newcomer cannot enter.
The price is a package, in euros, tax included: €41.99 for one submission without feedback in the Standard division, rising to €69.99 with a judge’s written review and €109.99 for both games with feedback on both. The cash at the top is small against that — €300 to a Standard first place, €100 to second, awarded per game — with the rest of a stated 7,000€+ pool in sample libraries, and the organizer says the list is still being finalised. What every entrant gets regardless is a verifiable certificate with their placement and a per-criterion breakdown of their scores; judging ignores mix and sound quality, so a free DAW competes on equal terms.
The rights clause is the reason this card carries a heads-up. Rule 3.1 says you retain full ownership — and then, in the same sentence, that entering “assigns, on a non-exclusive basis and free of charge, their copyright to their composition… and their artistic performances and recordings in a territorially and time unlimited way.” Non-exclusive is the good half: you can still license the music elsewhere, and Rule 3.7 says you may monetize it. What the clause never says is what the contest may do with the licence it takes. For one of this edition’s two games the registration page adds that “selected submissions may be featured in the in-game radio and released as part of a separate soundtrack pack on Steam.”
The record
Source
The Indie Game Music Contest home, registration and prizes pages and its Terms and Conditions (indiegamemusiccontest.com, terms updated August 16, 2024), all captured September 29, 2026.
Fee vs. prize
Entry costs $41.99; the top cash prize is $300 — the fee is 14.0% of it.
Who can enter
Composers worldwide, of any age and level, in two divisions judged and awarded separately: Young (22 and under, age verified if you win) and Standard (23 and over). Teams may enter under one registration. No game-audio experience is required.
What it costs
Standard division, tax included: Starter €41.99 (one submission, no feedback), Double €54.99 (two submissions), Learner €69.99 (one submission with a judge’s written feedback), Advanced €81.99, Complete €109.99 (both games, feedback on both). The Young division runs €3–€5 lower per package, from €38.99. Payment is in euros through PayPal. Captured September 29, 2026.
What you can win
Per the prizes page: Standard first place “Cash prize: 300” plus Soundiron and EastWest libraries; Standard second place “Cash prize: 100” plus libraries; Young first and second place and a Popularity Award, libraries only. Every prize is awarded once per game and division — nine winners in all. “The prizes for this edition are being finalised with our sponsors”, and Rule 2.6 reserves the right to change prizes. Entry from €41.99 against a €300 top cash prize is 14% of it.
What every entrant gets
A verifiable certificate showing your placement, and “detailed statistics” of how you scored on each evaluation criterion against the other participants. Every submission is judged by one of the named judges, blind. Written feedback is a paid package option, not part of the base price.
Who judges
Named on the contest page: Tobi Weiss, D’Anthoni Wooten (Dave the Diver), Jeff Tinsley and Corey Wallace, with a full jury page linked. Sponsors named on the prizes page: Soundiron, EastWest and Orchestral Tools. “Mixing, mastering, and sound quality don’t count.”
Rights, plainly
Rule 3.1: “The Participant retains full ownership of their work, but by entering the competition, assigns, on a non-exclusive basis and free of charge, their copyright to their composition submitted for the Contest and their artistic performances and recordings in a territorially and time unlimited way.” Rule 3.3 lets the contest present winning entries on its site; Rule 3.7 leaves you “free to monetize the music” but not the contest’s gameplay video. For My Little Cafe Nightmare, “selected submissions may be featured in the in-game radio and released as part of a separate soundtrack pack on Steam” — no payment for that is mentioned.
Dates
Registration September 2 – October 30, 2026; submission deadline November 4, 2026, 8 p.m. CET; semi-finalists December 11, finalists December 18, winners December 23, 2026. A full refund is available within five days of registering (Rule 4.5). One block on the home page still reads “Registration here is closed right now”; the registration page and the page header both say registration is open until October 30, with packages to choose from — the card goes with those.