As any prominent prize-giving event approaches, you'll find an outcry for the addition fresh award types to acknowledge unsung work and fill the spirits of followers with niche passions.
A fellow writer made the case advocating for terror-themed awards. It would be amazing. Equally deserving are board games, this being a dedicated supporter's campaign. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front because like all blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand stands as crucial and significant. This is the request: It's essential to create an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Categorizing art by genre isn't exact; it remains highly personal, and it will always start arguments and end in fuzzy definitions. This explains why film award organizations don’t do it. Yet it remains an unavoidable compromise in the world of video games, showing incredible range they barely qualify a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.
Present Award Structure
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature genre categories for Action, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these award types effectively encompass numerous genres, allowing placement for most games within them.
This doesn't apply to logic-based experiences. There’s simply nowhere to accommodate them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: building puzzles from a specific release, intense tile-matching from another release, engaging interpersonal challenges in another game. Which classification works within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.
The Representation Problem
There are dozens outstanding logic titles launched regularly without proper recognition during gaming ceremonies, except when they manage to fit for categories like Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging Indie races.
- A renowned logic title wasn’t nominated completely in 2014
- Another creative title was excluded in 2019
- Well-received sorting experience got ignored in 2021
- Only a few brain-teasers managed to sneak into independent or mobile categories
Value of Brain-Teasers
Commonly they're compact experiences, yet the craft of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games count as the most-played games globally and have been for many years.
The famous puzzle experience competes with well-known building titles competing to become most purchased experience; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Logic titles represent cornerstones within interactive entertainment, and engaging with almost every other genre.
The Solution and Justification
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. It would be easy to populate five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, since numerous excellent so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these are games that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the challenging frontier of video game design, creating some of most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they merit acknowledgment. Let’s not keep them waiting generations.
