As any major awards ceremony approaches, there’s always an outcry for introducing of new categories to acknowledge unsung work and fill the spirits of followers dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague previously argued advocating for terror-themed awards. It would be amazing. So would board games, this being someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front just as with other dedicated enthusiasts, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal stands as crucial and important of all. This is the request: We need a category for puzzle games.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Classifying creative works defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. It's understandable that cinema institutions avoid this approach. But it is an essential concession for the industry of gaming, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to have a chance for representation, specific award classifications remain vital.
Existing Game Classification System
The major gaming awards offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these classifications effectively encompass a lot of ground, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Not so for brain-teasing titles. No suitable classification appears to put them. Think about these this year’s best games, each quite distinct: structural challenges from a specific release, the pulse-pounding block-matching of another game, thought-provoking social scenarios of a third title. Which classification works between these six categories? Unfortunately, nowhere.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers launched regularly lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- A renowned logic title got overlooked for anything that year
- Another creative title received no nominations that year
- Popular arranging title was overlooked recently
- Only a few puzzle games scraped into niche award types
Importance of Logic Titles
Frequently they represent modest productions, but the art behind logic titles carries substantial weight. Famous handheld logic titles count as most popular titles in the world and have been for an extended period.
The famous puzzle experience challenges famous sandbox experiences competing to become most purchased experience; it additionally competes for top gaming experience. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, and they are in conversation across multiple categories.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Logic titles wouldn't face such difficulty. It would be easy to populate multiple candidates with fascinating, diverse, deserving games every year with ease — actually, with challenge, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
And to reiterate, these represent titles without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the hard edge game development, developing some of most fundamental forms of the video game form. Comparable to cinema stunt performers, they warrant appreciation. We shouldn't delay generations.
