Whenever a significant prize-giving event approaches, there’s always a clamor for the addition additional classifications to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and fill the hearts of fans with niche passions.
A fellow writer previously argued for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. So would strategy board titles, which is someone's personal cause. Yet I need to apologize in advance if I try to elbow in front because like all blinkered fanatics, I possess a compelling case for why my demand stands as crucial above others. The demand is this: We need a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Categorizing Game Types
Organizing artistic expressions isn't exact; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably generate discussions resulting in unclear classifications. It's understandable that cinema institutions steer clear of genre categories. However, it represents a necessary evil in the world of video games, which are so diverse they barely qualify a single creative category.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.
Current Gaming Award Categories
The major gaming awards currently feature genre categories for Action, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these award types effectively encompass a lot of ground, allowing placement for most games within them.
Different situation exists for logic-based experiences. There’s simply nowhere to put them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles in a particular game, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios of a third title. Which classification works among existing types? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Acknowledgment Issues
Many instances occur outstanding logic titles launched regularly lacking appropriate categories at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify for categories like Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the intensely contested Indie races.
- One classic puzzle game got overlooked completely in 2014
- A different innovative game missed out that year
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked that year
- Just some puzzle games scraped into niche award types
Significance of Puzzle Games
These are often modest productions, but the art behind logic titles is of massive significance. Iconic mobile puzzle games stand as most popular titles worldwide and have been for over a decade.
The iconic tile-matching title challenges popular creative games for the title of best-selling game of all time; it additionally competes for top gaming experience. Logic titles represent cornerstones to the art of video games, and engaging with almost every other genre.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. One could readily select five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles every year with ease — perhaps, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave many worthy titles.
And to reiterate, these are games without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the hard edge game development, creating some of the purest expressions of the video game form. Comparable to movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Let’s not keep them waiting decades.
