Each time a significant prize-giving event approaches, you'll find an outcry for the addition fresh award types to honor underappreciated efforts and fill the spirits of fans with niche passions.
A fellow writer made the case for a horror game category. It would be amazing. The same goes for strategy board titles, representing a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist for pushing forward just as with other single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand remains most pressing above others. This is the request: There should be a category for puzzle games.
Categorizing Game Types
Classifying creative works is not a science; it remains highly personal, and it will always start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. This explains why cinema institutions don’t do it. However, it represents an essential concession in the world of video games, showing incredible range they hardly constitute as a single art form.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.
Current Gaming Award Categories
The major gaming awards presently include classifications covering Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these award types actually cover numerous genres, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
This doesn't apply to puzzle games. No suitable classification appears to put them. Consider three of outstanding current releases, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles from additional release. Which classification works within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.
Acknowledgment Issues
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers published annually lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, unless they happen to qualify for categories like Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser received no recognition in any category that year
- Another creative title was excluded in 2019
- A beloved organization game was overlooked in 2021
- Only a few puzzle games barely qualified for small studio or handheld classifications
Significance of Puzzle Games
Commonly they're small games, however the design of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games count as most engaged experiences worldwide and have been for many years.
The famous puzzle experience rivals famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it additionally competes as greatest title ever. Logic titles represent cornerstones to the art of video games, while interacting with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. You could fill five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles every year with ease — or rather, with difficulty, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.
To emphasize again, these represent titles lacking appropriate categories in important events. Puzzle game makers are working at the hard edge interactive creation, creating some of most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Just like movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait 35 years.
