Each time a prominent prize-giving event approaches, there’s always a clamor to include fresh award types to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and satisfy the passions of followers dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague has already made for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. So would board games, this being a dedicated supporter's campaign. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward just as with other blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification supporting my request remains most pressing and important of all. The demand is this: We need a category for puzzle games.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and typically spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. This explains why film award organizations avoid this approach. But it is an unavoidable compromise for the industry of video games, showing incredible range they hardly constitute one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.
Existing Game Classification System
Leading game ceremonies offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these classifications successfully include a lot of ground, allowing placement for numerous titles.
Not so for puzzle games. No suitable classification appears for their placement. Examine these examples from recent excellent titles, all very different: building puzzles in a particular game, the pulse-pounding block-matching from another release, engaging interpersonal challenges from additional release. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.
Recognition Challenges
Numerous examples exist outstanding logic titles launched regularly lacking appropriate categories in entertainment awards, if they accidentally match for categories like Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive small studio competitions.
- An iconic brain-teaser got overlooked in any category in 2014
- Another imaginative release was excluded that year
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked recently
- Just some brain-teasers scraped into niche award types
Importance of Logic Titles
These are often modest productions, yet the craft in brain-teasers holds tremendous importance. Famous handheld logic titles stand as most popular titles worldwide maintaining this status for an extended period.
The iconic tile-matching title competes with popular creative games competing to become most purchased experience; it also contends for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones within interactive entertainment, while interacting with diverse game types.
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 — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude so many good games out.
Restating the point, these are games without proper classification at major gaming awards. Logic title developers operate at the challenging frontier game development, creating some of most fundamental forms of the video game form. Similar to cinema stunt performers, they warrant appreciation. We shouldn't delay decades.
