Each time a significant prize-giving event approaches, there’s always an outcry for the addition of new categories to honor overlooked contributions and delight the hearts of fans with niche passions.
Another commentator previously argued supporting a scary games classification. That would rule. Equally deserving are tabletop games, this being someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me when I prioritize just as with other single-minded supporters, I possess a compelling case for why my demand stands as crucial and important of all. Here's the proposal: We need a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably generate discussions and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason film award organizations avoid this approach. Yet it remains a necessary evil for the industry of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they hardly constitute a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to be recognized, while allowing diverse titles to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.
Present Award Structure
The major gaming awards presently include classifications covering Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Together, these six categories successfully include numerous genres, and you can find room for numerous titles.
This doesn't apply to logic-based experiences. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Consider three of this year’s best games, all very different: structural challenges from a specific release, the pulse-pounding block-matching of another game, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.
Recognition Challenges
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers published annually that have no home in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, and the highly challenging independent game categories.
- One classic puzzle game wasn’t nominated in any category that year
- Another creative title was excluded in 2019
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked recently
- Just some puzzle games scraped into niche award types
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often compact experiences, but the art of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Iconic mobile puzzle games count as most engaged experiences in the world and have been for an extended period.
The famous puzzle experience competes with popular creative games competing to become best-selling game of all time; it also contends for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, while interacting across multiple categories.
The Solution and Justification
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. It would be easy to populate five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude numerous deserving experiences.
And to reiterate, these represent titles without proper classification at major gaming awards. Puzzle game makers are working at the demanding boundary interactive creation, developing some of most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Comparable to film action specialists, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait 35 years.
