Each time a prominent honors show draws close, there’s always a demand to include of new categories to recognize overlooked contributions and delight the hearts of enthusiasts who have specialized interests.
Another commentator has already made for a horror game category. That would rule. The same goes for tabletop games, representing someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me when I prioritize because like all dedicated enthusiasts, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal remains most pressing above others. This is the request: It's essential to create a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions isn't exact; it remains highly personal, and typically generate discussions concluding with vague boundaries. It's understandable that movie academies don’t do it. But it is an essential concession within the realm of gaming, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them as a single art form.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.
Existing Game Classification System
Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include classifications covering Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these six categories successfully include many game types, and you can find room for numerous titles.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. No suitable classification appears to accommodate them. Consider three of outstanding current releases, all very different: structural challenges from a specific release, the pulse-pounding block-matching of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. Where could they possibly go between these six categories? Unfortunately, nowhere.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens outstanding logic titles released every year lacking appropriate categories at major award shows, if they accidentally match for categories like Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser got overlooked in any category in 2014
- Another imaginative release missed out that year
- A beloved organization game got ignored that year
- Only a few brain-teasers managed to sneak into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
These are often compact experiences, but the art of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles globally maintaining this status for an extended period.
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 for gaming as medium, and they are in conversation with diverse game types.
Proposal and Rationale
Puzzle games wouldn’t have that issue. One could readily select five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games every year with ease — or rather, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave so many good games out.
Restating the point, these represent titles without proper classification at major gaming awards. Puzzle game makers function at the hard edge game development, creating some of most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Just like movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait decades.
