As any prominent prize-giving event draws close, there’s always an outcry for introducing fresh award types to acknowledge unsung work and fill the spirits of fans dedicated to specific genres.
A fellow writer previously argued for a horror game category. That would rule. Equally deserving are board games, representing someone's personal cause. However, I must insist when I prioritize because like all blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification backing this proposal is the most urgent above others. Here's the proposal: There should be a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; it remains highly personal, and it will always generate discussions concluding with vague boundaries. It's understandable that movie academies steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains an essential concession for the industry of video games, that demonstrate such variety they barely qualify one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, while allowing diverse titles to receive proper recognition, genre categories are essential.
Current Gaming Award Categories
Leading game ceremonies presently include award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these classifications effectively encompass numerous genres, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Not so for puzzle games. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Examine these examples from recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: structural challenges from a specific release, intense tile-matching of another game, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. Which classification works among existing types? Unfortunately, nowhere.
The Representation Problem
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers published annually without proper recognition at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive small studio competitions.
- A renowned logic title received no recognition for anything that year
- A different innovative game was excluded in 2019
- A beloved organization game was overlooked recently
- Limited numbers of brain-teasers scraped into independent or mobile categories
Significance of Puzzle Games
Commonly they're modest productions, but the art behind logic titles is of massive significance. Iconic mobile puzzle games count as most engaged experiences globally continuing this trend for over a decade.
The famous puzzle experience challenges famous sandbox experiences competing to become best-selling game of all time; it additionally competes as greatest title ever. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks for gaming as medium, and engaging across multiple categories.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. It would be easy to populate multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles each ceremony simply — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
Restating the point, these represent titles lacking appropriate categories in important events. Logic title developers are working at the demanding boundary of video game design, developing some of essential manifestations of the video game form. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting generations.
