Each time a significant awards ceremony approaches, there’s always an outcry for the addition additional classifications to honor overlooked contributions and satisfy the hearts of followers dedicated to specific genres.
A fellow writer made the case for a horror game category. That would rule. The same goes for tabletop games, representing someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front just as with other blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification backing this proposal stands as crucial and significant. The demand is this: It's essential to create a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Categorizing Game Types
Categorizing art by genre defies precise measurement; it remains highly personal, and inevitably spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. There’s a reason movie academies avoid this approach. But it is an unavoidable compromise for the industry of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they barely qualify one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, and to ensure all game types to compete fairly, classification by type becomes crucial.
Current Gaming Award Categories
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature award types recognizing Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these six categories successfully include numerous genres, allowing placement accommodating various experiences.
Not so for puzzle games. There’s simply nowhere to put them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles of one title, the pulse-pounding block-matching from another release, engaging interpersonal challenges from additional release. Which classification works among existing types? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Recognition Challenges
There are dozens outstanding logic titles released every year that have no home at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive small studio competitions.
- An iconic brain-teaser received no recognition for anything in 2014
- A different innovative game received no nominations during that ceremony
- Well-received sorting experience got ignored recently
- Limited numbers of puzzle games scraped into independent or mobile categories
Importance of Logic Titles
These are often compact experiences, but the art of the puzzle game is of massive significance. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles worldwide and have been for over a decade.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges famous sandbox experiences for the title of best-selling game of all time; it also contends for best game of all time. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, while interacting with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Logic titles wouldn't face that issue. One could readily select multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles every year with ease — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these represent titles lacking appropriate categories during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the demanding boundary interactive creation, developing some of most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Just like cinema stunt performers, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting decades.
