🔗 Share this article

Each time a major awards ceremony nears, you'll find an outcry to include fresh award types to honor underappreciated efforts and delight the hearts of fans who have specialized interests.

Another commentator previously argued advocating for terror-themed awards. That would rule. So would strategy board titles, which is a passionate advocate's mission. 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 is the most urgent above others. The demand is this: There should be a category for puzzle games.

The Genre Classification Challenge

Classifying creative works defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and it will always spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. This explains why film award organizations avoid this approach. But it is a necessary evil within the realm of gaming, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.

For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, classification by type becomes crucial.

Present Award Structure

Leading game ceremonies presently include genre categories for Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these classifications actually cover numerous genres, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.

Not so for puzzle games. There’s simply nowhere to accommodate them. Examine these examples from this year’s best games, showing diverse approaches: structural challenges in a particular game, fast-paced pattern recognition from another release, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles from additional release. Where could they possibly go between these six categories? Unfortunately, nowhere.

Acknowledgment Issues

There are dozens excellent brain-teasers launched regularly without proper recognition during gaming ceremonies, if they accidentally match award groups including Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging Indie races.

• An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated in any category in 2014
• Another creative title received no nominations in 2019
• Well-received sorting experience was overlooked in 2021
• Limited numbers of brain-teasers barely qualified for niche award types

Value of Brain-Teasers

Commonly they're small games, yet the craft of the puzzle game is of massive significance. Well-known matching games stand as most popular titles in the world continuing this trend for an extended period.

The legendary block-stacking game rivals well-known building titles claiming status as best-selling game of all time; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Logic titles represent cornerstones within interactive entertainment, and engaging with diverse game types.

Proposal and Rationale

Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter such difficulty. You could fill multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — perhaps, with difficulty, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.

To emphasize again, these represent titles without proper classification in important events. Brain-teaser creators operate at the demanding boundary game development, developing some of most fundamental forms within interactive entertainment. Just like cinema stunt performers, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait generations.