Each time a significant prize-giving event nears, you'll find a demand to include of new categories to honor unsung work and delight the passions of followers dedicated to specific genres.
Another commentator previously argued for a horror game category. That would rule. Equally deserving are strategy board titles, representing someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front just as with other blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification supporting my request is the most urgent above others. Here's the proposal: We need an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Classifying creative works defies precise measurement; it remains highly personal, and inevitably start arguments concluding with vague boundaries. This explains why movie academies avoid this approach. However, it represents a necessary evil within the realm of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they barely qualify as a single art form.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, while allowing diverse titles to have a chance for representation, genre categories are essential.
Existing Game Classification System
Prominent interactive entertainment events offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these award types actually cover numerous genres, making space possible for numerous titles.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Think about these recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles in a particular game, fast-paced pattern recognition of another game, thought-provoking social scenarios of a third title. What category would fit them among existing types? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Recognition Challenges
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers published annually that have no home at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser received no recognition for anything in 2014
- A different innovative game received no nominations that year
- Popular arranging title got ignored recently
- Just some logic titles scraped into independent or mobile categories
Significance of Puzzle Games
These are often compact experiences, yet the craft in brain-teasers holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games stand as most popular titles globally continuing this trend for many years.
The iconic tile-matching title competes with famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running for top gaming experience. Puzzle games are foundational to the art of video games, and engaging with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. One could readily select a field of five interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude so many good games out.
Restating the point, these are games without proper classification in important events. Logic title developers function at the hard edge of video game design, producing among the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Comparable to movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait generations.
