As any significant prize-giving event draws close, one notices a clamor for introducing of new categories to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and fill the spirits of followers dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague made the case for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. The same goes for tabletop games, representing a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward since similar to single-minded supporters, there's a strong justification backing this proposal is the most urgent and important of all. The demand is this: We need a classification for brain-teasing titles.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Categorizing art by genre is not a science; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. This explains why movie academies don’t do it. Yet it remains an essential concession in the world of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them a single creative category.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to be recognized, and to ensure all game types to receive proper recognition, specific award classifications remain vital.
Existing Game Classification System
Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include award types recognizing Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these six categories successfully include many game types, and you can find room for most games within them.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. There’s simply nowhere to accommodate them. Think about these recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: the architectural riddles from a specific release, intense tile-matching of another game, thought-provoking social scenarios from additional release. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Recognition Challenges
Many instances occur outstanding logic titles published annually lacking appropriate categories in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, and the highly challenging small studio competitions.
- A renowned logic title got overlooked in any category in 2014
- Another imaginative release was excluded in 2019
- A beloved organization game got ignored that year
- Just some brain-teasers barely qualified for niche award types
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often small games, yet the craft in brain-teasers is of massive significance. Famous handheld logic titles stand as most popular titles globally and have been for over a decade.
The legendary block-stacking game competes with famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Puzzle games are foundational for gaming as medium, and engaging with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Puzzle games wouldn’t have that issue. You could fill five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games every year with ease — perhaps, with difficulty, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these represent titles that otherwise have no home at major gaming awards. Brain-teaser creators function at the challenging frontier game development, developing some of most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Comparable to film action specialists, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait generations.
