As any prominent prize-giving event nears, there’s always a clamor for the addition fresh award types to honor overlooked contributions and fill the spirits of fans with niche passions.
Another commentator has already made supporting a scary games classification. It would be amazing. So would strategy board titles, which is a passionate advocate's mission. Yet I need to apologize in advance when I prioritize since similar to blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand stands as crucial above others. Here's the proposal: It's essential to create a classification for brain-teasing titles.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Organizing artistic expressions defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and it will always generate discussions and end in fuzzy definitions. There’s a reason movie academies don’t do it. But it is an essential concession within the realm of gaming, which are so diverse they barely qualify as a single art form.
For the full spectrum of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to compete fairly, classification by type becomes crucial.
Present Award Structure
Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these classifications actually cover a lot of ground, making space possible accommodating various experiences.
Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. There’s simply nowhere to accommodate them. Consider three of this year’s best games, each quite distinct: building puzzles of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios of a third title. What category would fit them within current classifications? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Acknowledgment Issues
There are dozens excellent brain-teasers released every year without proper recognition during gaming ceremonies, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive Indie races.
- An iconic brain-teaser received no recognition for anything that year
- A different innovative game was excluded in 2019
- Well-received sorting experience was overlooked recently
- Only a few puzzle games scraped into independent or mobile categories
Value of Brain-Teasers
These are often modest productions, yet the craft of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games rank among most popular titles globally continuing this trend for many years.
The iconic tile-matching title competes with well-known building titles claiming status as highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks for gaming as medium, while interacting with almost every other genre.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. One could readily select five nominees engaging, different, qualified experiences annually without trouble — perhaps, with difficulty, given the need to exclude numerous deserving experiences.
And to reiterate, these are games lacking appropriate categories at major gaming awards. Brain-teaser creators are working at the demanding boundary game development, developing some of essential manifestations of the video game form. Similar to cinema stunt performers, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait 35 years.
