Tetris Couldn't Win at This Gaming Ceremony — Another Award Type May Address This Issue

Each time a major awards ceremony draws close, you'll find a demand to include of new categories to honor overlooked contributions and satisfy the passions of fans with niche passions.

Another commentator made the case for a horror game category. It would be amazing. So would tabletop games, which is a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist when I prioritize because like all single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument supporting my request remains most pressing above others. Here's the proposal: There should be a classification for brain-teasing titles.

Organizing Gaming Categories

Classifying creative works defies precise measurement; opinions vary greatly, and typically start arguments resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason movie academies avoid this approach. But it is an unavoidable compromise for the industry of interactive entertainment, showing incredible range they barely qualify one unified medium.

For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to receive acknowledgment, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.

Current Gaming Award Categories

Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include genre categories for Action, Action/Adventure, Role-Playing, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these award types actually cover a lot of ground, making space possible accommodating various experiences.

Different situation exists for puzzle games. No suitable classification appears to put them. Consider three of recent excellent titles, showing diverse approaches: the architectural riddles of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, engaging interpersonal challenges from additional release. Which classification works between these six categories? Simply put, no category fits.

The Representation Problem

Numerous examples exist outstanding logic titles published annually without proper recognition in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the extremely competitive small studio competitions.

• A renowned logic title wasn’t nominated completely during that awards season
• Another imaginative release was excluded in 2019
• Well-received sorting experience received no acknowledgment that year
• Only a few puzzle games barely qualified for small studio or handheld classifications

Significance of Puzzle Games

These are often modest productions, yet the craft of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles worldwide and have been for an extended period.

The iconic tile-matching title competes with well-known building titles competing to become most purchased experience; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks to the art of video games, and they are in conversation with diverse game types.

Proposal and Rationale

Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. It would be easy to populate a field of five interesting, varied, worthy titles each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.

To emphasize again, these include experiences lacking appropriate categories during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers function at the demanding boundary of video game design, producing among essential manifestations of gaming itself. Just like movie stunt professionals, they merit acknowledgment. We shouldn't delay decades.