Each time a major honors show nears, there’s always a demand for the addition of new categories to honor underappreciated efforts and satisfy the passions of enthusiasts with niche passions.
A fellow writer has already made advocating for terror-themed awards. It would be amazing. The same goes for strategy board titles, representing a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist if I try to elbow in front because like all blinkered fanatics, I have a cast-iron argument supporting my request is the most urgent and significant. Here's the proposal: We need a category for puzzle games.
Classifying creative works is not a science; it’s very subjective, and it will always spark debates concluding with vague boundaries. It's understandable that film award organizations don’t do it. But it is an unavoidable compromise within the realm of interactive entertainment, showing incredible range they hardly constitute one unified medium.
To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to be recognized, and to ensure all game types to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.
The major gaming awards offer these award types recognizing Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Together, these award types effectively encompass a lot of ground, and you can find room for numerous titles.
Not so for puzzle games. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Consider three of outstanding current releases, showing diverse approaches: the architectural riddles of one title, the pulse-pounding block-matching in a different title, engaging interpersonal challenges from additional release. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Unfortunately, nowhere.
There are dozens of brilliant puzzle games released every year lacking appropriate categories in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, and the highly challenging independent game categories.
These are often small games, however the design of the puzzle game carries substantial weight. Well-known matching games count as most engaged experiences worldwide and have been for many years.
The legendary block-stacking game competes with famous sandbox experiences claiming status as highest-selling title ever; it additionally competes for best game of all time. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, while interacting across multiple categories.
Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter that issue. You could fill a field of five engaging, different, qualified experiences every year with ease — actually, with challenge, given the need to exclude many worthy titles.
To emphasize again, these are games without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Brain-teaser creators operate at the challenging frontier game development, producing among essential manifestations of gaming itself. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting generations.
Maya Chen is a seasoned tech journalist and software developer with over a decade of experience in digital innovation and cybersecurity.
