As any prominent awards ceremony nears, one notices a demand for the addition of new categories to acknowledge overlooked contributions and satisfy the hearts of followers who have specialized interests.
My colleague previously argued advocating for terror-themed awards. That would be fantastic. Equally deserving are tabletop games, representing someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me when I prioritize just as with other blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand remains most pressing and important of all. Here's the proposal: We need an award type for logic-based games.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason movie academies steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains an unavoidable compromise within the realm of video games, that demonstrate such variety they hardly constitute one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to receive proper recognition, genre categories are essential.
Current Gaming Award Categories
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature genre categories for Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these classifications successfully include many game types, and you can find room for numerous titles.
Not so for puzzle games. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: structural challenges in a particular game, fast-paced pattern recognition from another release, engaging interpersonal challenges in another game. Where could they possibly go among existing types? Simply put, no category fits.
Recognition Challenges
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers released every year without proper recognition at major award shows, except when they manage to fit for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive small studio competitions.
- One classic puzzle game wasn’t nominated in any category during that awards season
- Another creative title was excluded in 2019
- Popular arranging title got ignored that year
- Only a few brain-teasers scraped into independent or mobile categories
Significance of Puzzle Games
Frequently they represent compact experiences, however the design in brain-teasers is of massive significance. Well-known matching games count as most engaged experiences in the world maintaining this status for over a decade.
The legendary block-stacking game rivals popular creative games claiming status as most purchased experience; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, and they are in conversation with diverse game types.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. One could readily select five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
And to reiterate, these represent titles that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the demanding boundary interactive creation, producing among the purest expressions of the video game form. Comparable to movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait decades.
