The Iconic Puzzle Game Wouldn't Succeed at The Game Awards — A New Category Could Fix That
Each time a prominent awards ceremony draws close, you'll find an outcry for the addition of new categories to acknowledge unsung work and delight the passions of fans dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague previously argued supporting a scary games classification. That would be fantastic. Equally deserving are strategy board titles, representing a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward just as with other blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand stands as crucial and significant. The demand is this: We need an award type for logic-based games.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Classifying creative works isn't exact; it’s very subjective, and inevitably spark debates resulting in unclear classifications. It's understandable that film award organizations avoid this approach. But it is an essential concession within the realm of gaming, which are so diverse they hardly constitute a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.
Current Gaming Award Categories
The major gaming awards presently include genre categories for Action, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these award types 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 put them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: structural challenges of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, engaging interpersonal challenges in another game. Which classification works within current classifications? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Acknowledgment Issues
Many instances occur outstanding logic titles launched regularly lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging independent game categories.
- One classic puzzle game got overlooked for anything in 2014
- A different innovative game received no nominations that year
- Well-received sorting experience received no acknowledgment recently
- Limited numbers of puzzle games scraped into independent or mobile categories
Importance of Logic Titles
Frequently they represent modest productions, but the art in brain-teasers holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games count as most popular titles globally and have been for an extended period.
The legendary block-stacking game challenges popular creative games competing to become most purchased experience; it additionally competes for top gaming experience. Puzzle games are foundational to the art of video games, and they are in conversation with almost every other genre.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter this problem. It would be easy to populate five nominees engaging, different, qualified experiences annually without trouble — perhaps, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
And to reiterate, these are games that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the demanding boundary interactive creation, producing among most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Similar to film action specialists, they warrant appreciation. Let’s not keep them waiting generations.