As any major honors show nears, one notices a demand for the addition of new categories to honor overlooked contributions and fill the spirits of fans dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague previously argued for a horror game category. It would be amazing. The same goes for board games, this being a dedicated supporter's campaign. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward because like all blinkered fanatics, I possess a compelling case backing this proposal is the most urgent above others. This is the request: We need an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; it’s very subjective, and it will always spark debates and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason cinema institutions steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains a necessary evil for the industry of gaming, that demonstrate such variety they hardly constitute a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, and to ensure all game types to receive proper recognition, genre categories are essential.
Present Award Structure
Prominent interactive entertainment events offer these genre categories for Action, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, plus athletic and racing experiences. Collectively, these award types actually cover many game types, allowing placement for numerous titles.
Not so for brain-teasing titles. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Think about these recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles from a specific release, the pulse-pounding block-matching in a different title, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. What category would fit them between these six categories? Simply put, no category fits.
The Representation Problem
Many instances occur of brilliant puzzle games released every year that have no home during gaming ceremonies, except when they manage to fit award groups including Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated completely in 2014
- Another creative title missed out that year
- Popular arranging title was overlooked recently
- Only a few brain-teasers barely qualified for small studio or handheld classifications
Significance of Puzzle Games
These are often compact experiences, yet the craft behind logic titles is of massive significance. Well-known matching games rank among most engaged experiences in the world and have been for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges popular creative games competing to become most purchased experience; it also contends for top gaming experience. Logic titles represent cornerstones 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, because you’d have to leave so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these include experiences lacking appropriate categories at major gaming awards. Brain-teaser creators function at the demanding boundary of video game design, developing some of the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Just like cinema stunt performers, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting 35 years.
