🔗 Share this article

Whenever a prominent awards ceremony draws close, there’s always an outcry to include additional classifications to honor underappreciated efforts and fill the spirits of followers who have specialized interests.

My colleague made the case advocating for terror-themed awards. That would rule. Equally deserving are strategy board titles, this being someone's personal cause. But they will have to forgive me if I try to elbow in front just as with other dedicated enthusiasts, I have a cast-iron argument for why my demand remains most pressing above others. This is the request: We need an award type for logic-based games.

Organizing Gaming Categories

Categorizing art by genre isn't exact; it’s very subjective, and typically spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. It's understandable that film award organizations avoid this approach. However, it represents a necessary evil for the industry of video games, showing incredible range they hardly constitute as a single art form.

For the full spectrum of gaming accomplishments to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, genre categories are essential.

Present Award Structure

Prominent interactive entertainment events presently include award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, Role-Playing, Combat games, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Between them, these award types effectively encompass many game types, allowing placement for numerous titles.

Different situation exists for puzzle games. No suitable classification appears for their placement. Think about these recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: structural challenges of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios from additional release. What category would fit them within current classifications? Nowhere, that’s where.

The Representation Problem

There are dozens outstanding logic titles published annually without proper recognition during gaming ceremonies, except when they manage to fit classification types such as Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging Indie races.

• A renowned logic title got overlooked in any category during that awards season
• A different innovative game missed out during that ceremony
• Well-received sorting experience received no acknowledgment in 2021
• Limited numbers of puzzle games barely qualified for niche award types

Importance of Logic Titles

Commonly they're modest productions, but the art of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Famous handheld logic titles stand as most popular titles worldwide and have been for an extended period.

The iconic tile-matching title rivals popular creative games for the title of most purchased experience; it also contends for best game of all time. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks within interactive entertainment, while interacting with almost every other genre.

Proposal and Rationale

Puzzle games wouldn’t have that issue. You could fill five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude so many good games out.

Restating the point, these include experiences lacking appropriate categories during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the demanding boundary of video game design, creating some of the purest expressions of the video game form. Just like cinema stunt performers, they merit acknowledgment. Let’s not keep them waiting decades.