Whenever a major prize-giving event nears, you'll find an outcry for introducing additional classifications to recognize overlooked contributions and satisfy the spirits of enthusiasts who have specialized interests.
My colleague made the case supporting a scary games classification. That would be fantastic. So would strategy board titles, representing someone's personal cause. Yet I need to apologize in advance when I prioritize just as with other single-minded supporters, there's a strong justification for why my demand remains most pressing and significant. The demand is this: We need a category for puzzle games.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and it will always generate discussions and end in fuzzy definitions. This explains why movie academies steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains a necessary evil within the realm of gaming, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.
Present Award Structure
The major gaming awards offer these genre categories for Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these six categories successfully include a lot of ground, allowing placement accommodating various experiences.
Not so for brain-teasing titles. No suitable classification appears for their placement. Examine these examples from recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: building puzzles in a particular game, the pulse-pounding block-matching in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios from additional release. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers published annually lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging small studio competitions.
- One classic puzzle game got overlooked completely during that awards season
- Another imaginative release received no nominations that year
- A beloved organization game was overlooked that year
- Just some brain-teasers barely qualified for niche award types
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often modest productions, but the art of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Famous handheld logic titles rank among the most-played games worldwide and have been for over a decade.
The iconic tile-matching title competes with famous sandbox experiences for the title of highest-selling title ever; it also contends as greatest title ever. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks to the art of video games, and engaging with diverse game types.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter that issue. One could readily select five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
To emphasize again, these include experiences without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the demanding boundary interactive creation, developing some of essential manifestations within interactive entertainment. Just like cinema stunt performers, they merit acknowledgment. We shouldn't delay generations.
