As any prominent awards ceremony approaches, you'll find an outcry for the addition additional classifications to recognize underappreciated efforts and fill the hearts of fans with niche passions.
My colleague previously argued advocating for terror-themed awards. That would rule. So would strategy board titles, which is a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward because like all single-minded supporters, I possess a compelling case backing this proposal remains most pressing and significant. The demand is this: We need a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; it’s very subjective, and typically start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. This explains why cinema institutions don’t do it. But it is a necessary evil for the industry of video games, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of achievement in video games to receive acknowledgment, while allowing diverse titles to compete fairly, classification by type becomes crucial.
Current Gaming Award Categories
Prominent interactive entertainment events offer these genre categories for Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these classifications actually cover many game types, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Examine these examples from recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles of one title, intense tile-matching of another game, engaging interpersonal challenges in another game. What category would fit them between these six categories? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Recognition Challenges
Many instances occur excellent brain-teasers published annually without proper recognition in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.
- One classic puzzle game received no recognition in any category in 2014
- A different innovative game missed out that year
- A beloved organization game got ignored that year
- Just some logic titles scraped into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
Commonly they're compact experiences, however the design behind logic titles is of massive significance. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most engaged experiences globally and have been for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges famous sandbox experiences competing to become most purchased experience; it also contends for best game of all time. Puzzle games are foundational to the art of video games, while interacting with diverse game types.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Puzzle games wouldn’t have this problem. You could fill multiple candidates with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these include experiences that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the challenging frontier game development, producing among most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Just like movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. We shouldn't delay 35 years.
