As any prominent honors show draws close, you'll find a demand to include fresh award types to acknowledge overlooked contributions and delight the passions of followers with niche passions.
Another commentator has already made for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. The same goes for strategy board titles, this being someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me when I prioritize because like all single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal stands as crucial and significant. Here's the proposal: We need a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; it’s very subjective, and it will always generate discussions resulting in unclear classifications. It's understandable that cinema institutions steer clear of genre categories. However, it represents an unavoidable compromise for the industry of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they hardly constitute a single creative category.
To recognize the complete range of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, and to ensure all game types to compete fairly, specific award classifications remain vital.
Present Award Structure
Leading game ceremonies offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these award types actually cover a lot of ground, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. No suitable classification appears to accommodate them. Consider three of this year’s best games, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles from additional release. Which classification works among existing types? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
Many instances occur of brilliant puzzle games released every year without proper recognition at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- One classic puzzle game wasn’t nominated for anything that year
- Another creative title was excluded in 2019
- Popular arranging title received no acknowledgment in 2021
- Limited numbers of logic titles barely qualified for small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
These are often modest productions, yet the craft of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles in the world and have been for over a decade.
The famous puzzle experience rivals famous sandbox experiences for the title of best-selling game of all time; it also contends for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, and they are in conversation with almost every other genre.
The Solution and Justification
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter this problem. You could fill a field of five with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
Restating the point, these are games without proper classification at major gaming awards. Brain-teaser creators operate at the hard edge of video game design, developing some of most fundamental forms of the video game form. Just like film action specialists, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait 35 years.
