As any major awards ceremony nears, you'll find an outcry for introducing additional classifications to honor underappreciated efforts and satisfy the hearts of fans with niche passions.
Another commentator has already made supporting a scary games classification. It would be amazing. The same goes for tabletop games, this being a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist if I try to elbow in front because like all single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand is the most urgent above others. Here's the proposal: It's essential to create a classification for brain-teasing titles.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Categorizing art by genre isn't exact; it remains highly personal, and typically start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. This explains why cinema institutions steer clear of genre categories. Yet it remains an essential concession in the world of interactive entertainment, showing incredible range they barely qualify one unified medium.
For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, and to ensure all game types to have a chance for representation, genre categories are essential.
Existing Game Classification System
Leading game ceremonies offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these award types successfully include many game types, allowing placement for numerous titles.
Not so for logic-based experiences. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Consider three of this year’s best games, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles from a specific release, fast-paced pattern recognition of another game, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles in another game. Which classification works among existing types? Nowhere, that’s where.
Acknowledgment Issues
Many instances occur outstanding logic titles released every year lacking appropriate categories during gaming ceremonies, if they accidentally match classification types such as Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.
- A renowned logic title received no recognition in any category that year
- A different innovative game was excluded during that ceremony
- A beloved organization game got ignored in 2021
- Only a few puzzle games barely qualified for small studio or handheld classifications
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often compact experiences, however the design in brain-teasers is of massive significance. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among the most-played games in the world and have been for many years.
The famous puzzle experience rivals famous sandbox experiences claiming status as most purchased experience; it additionally competes for top gaming experience. Puzzle games are foundational for gaming as medium, and they are in conversation with almost every other genre.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter this problem. You could fill five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.
And to reiterate, these represent titles that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers operate at the demanding boundary game development, producing among the purest expressions of gaming itself. Similar to cinema stunt performers, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting 35 years.
