Each time a significant awards ceremony nears, one notices a demand to include additional classifications to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and delight the spirits of followers who have specialized interests.
Another commentator has already made for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. Equally deserving are board games, representing a dedicated supporter's campaign. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front just as with other single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument supporting my request remains most pressing and significant. The demand is this: There should be an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; it remains highly personal, and inevitably spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. It's understandable that movie academies don’t do it. However, it represents a necessary evil for the industry of gaming, that demonstrate such variety they hardly constitute one unified medium.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to receive acknowledgment, while allowing diverse titles to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.
Existing Game Classification System
Leading game ceremonies offer these award types recognizing Action, Adventure-action titles, Role-Playing, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these award types successfully include a lot of ground, making space possible for numerous titles.
This doesn't apply to brain-teasing titles. There’s simply nowhere to put them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, all very different: structural challenges from a specific release, intense tile-matching from another release, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles from additional release. What category would fit them between these six categories? Nowhere, that’s where.
Acknowledgment Issues
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers published annually lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, if they accidentally match for categories like Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.
- One classic puzzle game got overlooked in any category in 2014
- Another creative title received no nominations in 2019
- A beloved organization game was overlooked that year
- Limited numbers of puzzle games scraped into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
Frequently they represent modest productions, but the art behind logic titles holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games rank among the most-played games worldwide and have been for over a decade.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges popular creative games competing to become most purchased experience; it’s also in the running for best game of all time. Puzzle games are foundational to the art of video games, and they are in conversation with almost every other genre.
The Solution and Justification
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. One could readily select five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — perhaps, with difficulty, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.
And to reiterate, these are games without proper classification in important events. Puzzle game makers function at the demanding boundary interactive creation, creating some of the purest expressions of gaming itself. Just like movie stunt professionals, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait decades.
