Whenever a prominent awards ceremony approaches, you'll find an outcry for introducing additional classifications to honor underappreciated efforts and satisfy the passions of fans dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague made the case for a horror game category. That would rule. Equally deserving are strategy board titles, representing a dedicated supporter's campaign. However, I must insist for pushing forward because like all dedicated enthusiasts, I possess a compelling case for why my demand stands as crucial and important of all. Here's the proposal: It's essential to create a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Categorizing art by genre defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and typically generate discussions resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason movie academies avoid this approach. But it is an essential concession for the industry of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they barely qualify a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of gaming accomplishments to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.
Existing Game Classification System
Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include classifications covering Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these classifications successfully include many game types, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Different situation exists for logic-based experiences. There’s simply nowhere to put them. Think about these this year’s best games, all very different: the architectural riddles from a specific release, intense tile-matching in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios from additional release. What category would fit them within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.
Recognition Challenges
There are dozens of brilliant puzzle games launched regularly without proper recognition at major award shows, except when they manage to fit classification types such as Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser got overlooked for anything during that awards season
- Another creative title received no nominations during that ceremony
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked recently
- Only a few brain-teasers scraped into small studio or handheld classifications
Value of Brain-Teasers
Frequently they represent small games, however the design of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Well-known matching games rank among most engaged experiences in the world and have been for many years.
The iconic tile-matching title rivals famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, and they are in conversation across multiple categories.
The Solution and Justification
Logic titles wouldn't face that issue. One could readily select multiple candidates with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, given the need to exclude numerous deserving experiences.
Restating the point, these are games lacking appropriate categories in important events. Puzzle game makers function at the hard edge interactive creation, producing among essential manifestations of gaming itself. Just like cinema stunt performers, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait decades.
