As any significant awards ceremony approaches, one notices an outcry to include fresh award types to recognize underappreciated efforts and satisfy the hearts of enthusiasts who have specialized interests.
My colleague made the case for a horror game category. It would be amazing. So would strategy board titles, which is someone's personal cause. However, I must insist for pushing forward just as with other dedicated enthusiasts, I possess a compelling case supporting my request remains most pressing and significant. This is the request: We need a category for puzzle games.
Categorizing Game Types
Classifying creative works isn't exact; opinions vary greatly, and it will always spark debates and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason film award organizations avoid this approach. But it is an unavoidable compromise for the industry of video games, showing incredible range they barely qualify one unified medium.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to be recognized, while allowing diverse titles to have a chance for representation, specific award classifications remain vital.
Current Gaming Award Categories
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature genre categories for Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these six categories successfully include many game types, allowing placement accommodating various experiences.
Not so for puzzle games. There’s simply nowhere for their placement. Think about these outstanding current releases, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles in a particular game, the pulse-pounding block-matching of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles in another game. What category would fit them within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
Many instances occur of brilliant puzzle games published annually lacking appropriate categories at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.
- One classic puzzle game received no recognition for anything in 2014
- A different innovative game was excluded in 2019
- Popular arranging title received no acknowledgment recently
- Just some logic titles managed to sneak into independent or mobile categories
Importance of Logic Titles
Commonly they're small games, but the art behind logic titles holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games rank among most popular titles in the world continuing this trend for an extended period.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges famous sandbox experiences claiming status as best-selling game of all time; it also contends for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, while interacting with diverse game types.
Proposal and Rationale
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. One could readily select multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, given the need to exclude so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these represent titles that otherwise have no home in important events. Brain-teaser creators are working at the challenging frontier interactive creation, developing some of the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Just like movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait 35 years.
