Whenever a significant honors show nears, one notices an outcry for introducing additional classifications to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and satisfy the spirits of followers who have specialized interests.
My colleague made the case supporting a scary games classification. That would rule. So would board games, this being someone's personal cause. Yet I need to apologize in advance if I try to elbow in front since similar to single-minded supporters, I possess a compelling case supporting my request is the most urgent above others. This is the request: We need an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Categorizing art by genre is not a science; it remains highly personal, and it will always generate discussions and end in fuzzy definitions. This explains why movie academies steer clear of genre categories. But it is an unavoidable compromise within the realm of video games, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them a single creative category.
For comprehensive acknowledgment of gaming accomplishments to be recognized, while allowing diverse titles to compete fairly, classification by type becomes crucial.
Current Gaming Award Categories
The major gaming awards currently feature classifications covering Action, Adventure-action titles, Role-Playing, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these six categories successfully include many game types, making space possible for most games within them.
Not so for puzzle games. There’s simply nowhere to accommodate them. Examine these examples from outstanding current releases, all very different: the architectural riddles from a specific release, intense tile-matching of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. Which classification works within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers released every year lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, if they accidentally match award groups including Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated completely during that awards season
- Another creative title was excluded that year
- A beloved organization game received no acknowledgment that year
- Only a few puzzle games managed to sneak into niche award types
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often small games, however the design of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Iconic mobile puzzle games stand as the most-played games in the world and have been for an extended period.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges popular creative games for the title of highest-selling title ever; it additionally competes as greatest title ever. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, and engaging with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. One could readily select five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games every year with ease — actually, with challenge, since numerous excellent numerous deserving experiences.
To emphasize again, these include experiences without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Brain-teaser creators operate at the challenging frontier game development, creating some of the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Similar to film action specialists, they warrant appreciation. We shouldn't delay 35 years.
