Each time a major prize-giving event nears, you'll find a clamor to include additional classifications to honor underappreciated efforts and delight the hearts of fans who have specialized interests.
Another commentator made the case supporting a scary games classification. That would rule. Equally deserving are strategy board titles, which is a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance if I try to elbow in front because like all blinkered fanatics, I possess a compelling case for why my demand remains most pressing and significant. Here's the proposal: There should be a category for puzzle games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Classifying creative works is not a science; it remains highly personal, and inevitably start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason movie academies don’t do it. But it is an unavoidable compromise for the industry of interactive entertainment, that demonstrate such variety they barely qualify a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to be recognized, and to ensure all game types to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.
Existing Game Classification System
The major gaming awards presently include award types recognizing Action, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these six categories effectively encompass many game types, making space possible for numerous titles.
Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. No suitable classification appears for their placement. Think about these recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: the architectural riddles of one title, intense tile-matching in a different title, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. Which classification works within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens outstanding logic titles published annually that have no home in entertainment awards, if they accidentally match classification types such as Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, or the intensely contested independent game categories.
- An iconic brain-teaser got overlooked for anything that year
- Another imaginative release received no nominations that year
- Well-received sorting experience received no acknowledgment recently
- Limited numbers of brain-teasers scraped into small studio or handheld classifications
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often modest productions, but the art behind logic titles holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games stand as most popular titles in the world maintaining this status for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game competes with well-known building titles claiming status as best-selling game of all time; it’s also in the running for top gaming experience. Logic titles represent cornerstones for gaming as medium, and they are in conversation across multiple categories.
Proposal and Rationale
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter this problem. It would be easy to populate multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
Restating the point, these are games that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers are working at the hard edge interactive creation, developing some of most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Comparable to cinema stunt performers, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait 35 years.