Each time a major awards ceremony approaches, there’s always a clamor to include of new categories to honor underappreciated efforts and delight the spirits of fans with niche passions.
A fellow writer made the case supporting a scary games classification. That would rule. So would tabletop games, representing a dedicated supporter's campaign. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward since similar to dedicated enthusiasts, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand remains most pressing and important of all. This is the request: It's essential to create a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; opinions vary greatly, and it will always start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. It's understandable that film award organizations steer clear of genre categories. However, it represents an unavoidable compromise for the industry of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they hardly constitute as a single art form.
For comprehensive acknowledgment of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to receive proper recognition, genre categories are essential.
Present Award Structure
Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include classifications covering Action, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these six categories actually cover a lot of ground, making space possible for most games within them.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. No suitable classification appears for their placement. Think about these outstanding current releases, showing diverse approaches: the architectural riddles from a specific release, intense tile-matching of another game, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. What category would fit them within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
Numerous examples exist outstanding logic titles launched regularly lacking appropriate categories in entertainment awards, if they accidentally match for categories like Handheld titles, 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 received no nominations that year
- A beloved organization game got ignored that year
- Just some puzzle games scraped into independent or mobile categories
Value of Brain-Teasers
Frequently they represent modest productions, yet the craft in brain-teasers holds tremendous importance. Famous handheld logic titles stand as the most-played games globally continuing this trend for an extended period.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges well-known building titles competing to become best-selling game of all time; it additionally competes for top gaming experience. Puzzle games are foundational for gaming as medium, while interacting across multiple categories.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Logic titles wouldn't face that issue. It would be easy to populate a field of five engaging, different, qualified experiences every year with ease — or rather, with difficulty, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
And to reiterate, these represent titles without proper classification in important events. Brain-teaser creators operate at the hard edge of video game design, developing some of essential manifestations of the video game form. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait decades.
