Tetris Couldn't Triumph at The Game Awards — An Additional Classification Could Fix That
Whenever a prominent awards ceremony nears, one notices a demand for introducing fresh award types to recognize underappreciated efforts and fill the passions of fans dedicated to specific genres.
My colleague previously argued supporting a scary games classification. That would be fantastic. Equally deserving are tabletop games, which is a dedicated supporter's campaign. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward since similar to blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification backing this proposal remains most pressing and significant. Here's the proposal: There should be a classification for brain-teasing titles.
The Genre Classification Challenge
Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; it’s very subjective, and typically spark debates and end in fuzzy definitions. It's understandable that movie academies avoid this approach. Yet it remains a necessary evil for the industry of interactive entertainment, that demonstrate such variety they barely qualify one unified medium.
For comprehensive acknowledgment of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, specific award classifications remain vital.
Present Award Structure
The major gaming awards presently include genre categories for Action, Adventure-action titles, Role-Playing, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Collectively, these classifications actually cover a lot of ground, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.
Different situation exists for logic-based experiences. No appropriate category exists to put them. Think about these outstanding current releases, each quite distinct: building puzzles from a specific release, intense tile-matching in a different title, thought-provoking social scenarios in another game. Where could they possibly go within current classifications? Unfortunately, nowhere.
Acknowledgment Issues
Numerous examples exist outstanding logic titles released every year without proper recognition in entertainment awards, if they accidentally match for categories like Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the extremely competitive independent game categories.
- A renowned logic title wasn’t nominated for anything during that awards season
- Another imaginative release was excluded that year
- A beloved organization game got ignored in 2021
- Limited numbers of logic titles barely qualified for niche award types
Significance of Puzzle Games
These are often compact experiences, yet the craft in brain-teasers holds tremendous importance. Iconic mobile puzzle games count as the most-played games in the world continuing this trend for over a decade.
The iconic tile-matching title competes with famous sandbox experiences competing to become highest-selling title ever; it’s also in the running for best game of all time. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks for gaming as medium, and engaging with almost every other genre.
The Solution and Justification
Logic titles wouldn't face such difficulty. It would be easy to populate five nominees with fascinating, diverse, deserving games annually without trouble — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.
And to reiterate, these represent titles without proper classification during prominent ceremonies. Puzzle game makers function at the demanding boundary interactive creation, creating some of the purest expressions within interactive entertainment. Comparable to cinema stunt performers, they deserve recognition. We shouldn't delay decades.