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Tetris Couldn't Triumph at The Game Awards — Another Award Type Might Solve This

As any significant awards ceremony approaches, you'll find an outcry for the addition fresh award types to acknowledge unsung work and delight the spirits of fans dedicated to specific genres.

My colleague previously argued for a horror game category. That would be fantastic. So would board games, representing a passionate advocate's mission. However, I must insist when I prioritize just as with other single-minded supporters, I have a cast-iron argument backing this proposal is the most urgent and important of all. This is the request: We need a classification for brain-teasing titles.

Organizing Gaming Categories

Classifying creative works is not a science; it’s very subjective, and inevitably spark debates resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason cinema institutions avoid this approach. But it is an essential concession within the realm of gaming, showing incredible range it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.

To recognize the complete range of interactive entertainment excellence to gain proper attention, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, genre categories are essential.

Current Gaming Award Categories

The major gaming awards presently include award types recognizing Action, Action/Adventure, RPG experiences, Fighting, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these classifications actually cover many game types, allowing placement for numerous titles.

Different situation exists for logic-based experiences. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Examine these examples from recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles from a specific release, fast-paced pattern recognition of another game, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. Which classification works among existing types? Unfortunately, nowhere.

Acknowledgment Issues

There are dozens outstanding logic titles launched regularly that have no home at major award shows, unless they happen to qualify classification types such as Handheld titles, Virtual reality experiences, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.

  • One classic puzzle game received no recognition in any category in 2014
  • Another imaginative release received no nominations in 2019
  • Well-received sorting experience got ignored that year
  • Only a few brain-teasers managed to sneak into small studio or handheld classifications

Significance of Puzzle Games

These are often compact experiences, but the art in brain-teasers is of massive significance. Famous handheld logic titles count as most popular titles in the world and have been for over a decade.

The legendary block-stacking game challenges well-known building titles claiming status as highest-selling title ever; it also contends for best game of all time. Brain-teasers form essential building blocks within interactive entertainment, while interacting across multiple categories.

Recommendation and Reasoning

Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter this problem. It would be easy to populate a field of five engaging, different, qualified experiences each ceremony simply — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.

To emphasize again, these include experiences without proper classification at major gaming awards. Brain-teaser creators operate at the hard edge interactive creation, developing some of essential manifestations of gaming itself. Comparable to film action specialists, they deserve recognition. Let’s not keep them waiting decades.

The writer

Shawn Simmons

A tech enthusiast and digital strategist with over 8 years of experience in web development and content creation.

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