Whenever a major honors show approaches, you'll find an outcry to include of new categories to acknowledge unsung work and fill the passions of enthusiasts dedicated to specific genres.
A fellow writer previously argued supporting a scary games classification. It would be amazing. The same goes for board games, this being a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance when I prioritize since similar to blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal is the most urgent above others. This is the request: We need a category for puzzle games.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions isn't exact; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably start arguments concluding with vague boundaries. There’s a reason film award organizations steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains a necessary evil in the world of gaming, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.
For the full spectrum of gaming accomplishments to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to have a chance for representation, specific award classifications remain vital.
Present Award Structure
Leading game ceremonies currently feature classifications covering Action, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these six categories successfully include a lot of ground, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Not so for brain-teasing titles. No suitable classification appears to put them. Think about these this year’s best games, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles in a particular game, intense tile-matching in a different title, engaging interpersonal challenges in another game. Which classification works among existing types? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens outstanding logic titles published annually that have no home during gaming ceremonies, if they accidentally match for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive independent game categories.
- A renowned logic title wasn’t nominated in any category in 2014
- A different innovative game was excluded that year
- A beloved organization game got ignored that year
- Limited numbers of brain-teasers managed to sneak into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
Commonly they're small games, but the art in brain-teasers is of massive significance. Well-known matching games stand as most popular titles in the world maintaining this status for over a decade.
The legendary block-stacking game rivals famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Puzzle games are foundational for gaming as medium, while interacting across multiple categories.
Proposal and Rationale
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. You could fill five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — actually, with challenge, since numerous excellent many worthy titles.
And to reiterate, these are games without proper classification at major gaming awards. Puzzle game makers are working at the demanding boundary interactive creation, producing among most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Similar to film action specialists, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait decades.
