Each time a major awards ceremony nears, there’s always an outcry for introducing of new categories to honor overlooked contributions and delight the spirits of followers who have specialized interests.
Another commentator has already made supporting a scary games classification. That would rule. Equally deserving are tabletop games, representing a dedicated supporter's campaign. However, I must insist if I try to elbow in front just as with other blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument supporting my request is the most urgent and significant. Here's the proposal: We need an award type for logic-based games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Categorizing art by genre isn't exact; it’s very subjective, and typically generate discussions resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason cinema institutions don’t do it. But it is a necessary evil for the industry of video games, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them as a single art form.
For comprehensive acknowledgment of achievement in video games to be recognized, while allowing diverse titles to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.
Existing Game Classification System
Leading game ceremonies currently feature award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these award types actually cover many game types, allowing placement for most games within them.
Not so for puzzle games. No suitable classification appears to accommodate them. Consider three of this year’s best games, all very different: structural challenges of one title, intense tile-matching in a different title, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. What category would fit them between these six categories? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
Numerous examples exist of brilliant puzzle games launched regularly that have no home in entertainment awards, except when they manage to fit award groups including Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive independent game categories.
- One classic puzzle game received no recognition for anything in 2014
- Another imaginative release was excluded in 2019
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked recently
- Limited numbers of logic titles barely qualified for niche award types
Importance of Logic Titles
Frequently they represent small games, yet the craft of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Famous handheld logic titles stand as the most-played games in the world and have been for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game rivals popular creative games claiming status as best-selling game of all time; it additionally competes for best game of all time. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks to the art of video games, while interacting across multiple categories.
The Solution and Justification
Puzzle games wouldn’t have that issue. It would be easy to populate five nominees engaging, different, qualified experiences every year with ease — or rather, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave so many good games out.
And to reiterate, these are games without proper classification at major gaming awards. Puzzle game makers function at the challenging frontier game development, producing among most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Comparable to film action specialists, they merit acknowledgment. We shouldn't delay decades.
