Whenever a prominent prize-giving event draws close, one notices a clamor for the addition fresh award types to recognize underappreciated efforts and fill the hearts of fans dedicated to specific genres.
A fellow writer previously argued advocating for terror-themed awards. That would be fantastic. The same goes for board games, representing someone's personal cause. However, I must insist when I prioritize since similar to blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification backing this proposal is the most urgent and important of all. Here's the proposal: It's essential to create an award type for logic-based games.
Categorizing Game Types
Classifying creative works is not a science; it’s very subjective, and inevitably spark debates and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason movie academies avoid this approach. However, it represents an essential concession for the industry of gaming, that demonstrate such variety they barely qualify as a single art form.
For comprehensive acknowledgment of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to receive proper recognition, specific award classifications remain vital.
Existing Game Classification System
Leading game ceremonies offer these award types recognizing Action, Adventure-action titles, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Together, these award types effectively encompass numerous genres, allowing placement for numerous titles.
Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. There’s simply nowhere for their placement. Consider three of recent excellent titles, all very different: building puzzles of one title, the pulse-pounding block-matching from another release, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles from additional release. What category would fit them within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.
The Representation Problem
Numerous examples exist excellent brain-teasers released every year without proper recognition during gaming ceremonies, except when they manage to fit for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive independent game categories.
- An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated for anything that year
- Another imaginative release received no nominations during that ceremony
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked that year
- Just some puzzle games managed to sneak into niche award types
Significance of Puzzle Games
These are often small games, however the design behind logic titles carries substantial weight. Well-known matching games count as the most-played games in the world maintaining this status for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game rivals famous sandbox experiences claiming status as highest-selling title ever; it also contends for best game of all time. Logic titles represent cornerstones within interactive entertainment, and they are in conversation with almost every other genre.
Proposal and Rationale
Logic titles wouldn't face this problem. One could readily select five nominees interesting, varied, worthy titles every year with ease — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave many worthy titles.
And to reiterate, these are games that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers operate at the challenging frontier of video game design, producing among the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Similar to film action specialists, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait decades.
