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The Iconic Puzzle Game Couldn't Win at The Game Awards — An Additional Classification Could Fix That

Each time a significant honors show draws close, one notices an outcry for introducing fresh award types to acknowledge unsung work and satisfy the passions of followers dedicated to specific genres.

My colleague made the case for a horror game category. It would be amazing. So would strategy board titles, representing a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist for pushing forward since similar to single-minded supporters, there's a strong justification backing this proposal stands as crucial and important of all. This is the request: There should be an award type for logic-based games.

Organizing Gaming Categories

Organizing artistic expressions isn't exact; opinions vary greatly, and it will always start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason cinema institutions avoid this approach. Yet it remains a necessary evil in the world of video games, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them as a single art form.

For comprehensive acknowledgment of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, and to ensure all game types to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.

Present Award Structure

The major gaming awards offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these award types actually cover numerous genres, making space possible accommodating various experiences.

Different situation exists for brain-teasing titles. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Think about these this year’s best games, showing diverse approaches: building puzzles in a particular game, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. What category would fit them within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.

The Representation Problem

Numerous examples exist of brilliant puzzle games launched regularly lacking appropriate categories at major award shows, except when they manage to fit classification types such as Mobile Game, Virtual reality experiences, and the highly challenging Indie races.

  • A renowned logic title got overlooked completely in 2014
  • Another creative title was excluded during that ceremony
  • A beloved organization game received no acknowledgment that year
  • Just some brain-teasers managed to sneak into independent or mobile categories

Value of Brain-Teasers

Commonly they're modest productions, however the design in brain-teasers carries substantial weight. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles worldwide continuing this trend for over a decade.

The iconic tile-matching title rivals popular creative games competing to become best-selling game of all time; it’s also in the running for top gaming experience. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks within interactive entertainment, and they are in conversation with diverse game types.

Recommendation and Reasoning

Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter that issue. One could readily select a field of five engaging, different, qualified experiences every year with ease — or rather, with difficulty, given the need to exclude numerous deserving experiences.

Restating the point, these represent titles that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the hard edge game development, developing some of the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Just like movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Don't make them wait decades.

Written by

Christopher Marshall

Emma Hartley is a London-based design writer and curator, passionate about exploring the intersection of technology and art.

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