Tetris Couldn't Triumph at The Game Awards — An Additional Classification Could Fix That

Whenever a major awards ceremony nears, you'll find a clamor for introducing additional classifications to honor unsung work and fill the hearts of followers with niche passions.

My colleague previously argued for a horror game category. That would rule. Equally deserving are board games, which is a dedicated supporter's campaign. Yet I need to apologize in advance for pushing forward just as with other single-minded supporters, I possess a compelling case supporting my request stands as crucial and significant. Here's the proposal: We need an award type for logic-based games.

Categorizing Game Types

Categorizing art by genre is not a science; opinions vary greatly, and inevitably generate discussions resulting in unclear classifications. There’s a reason movie academies avoid this approach. Yet it remains a necessary evil in the world of gaming, that demonstrate such variety it's challenging to consider them as a single art form.

To recognize the complete range of achievement in video games to gain proper attention, while allowing diverse titles to have a chance for representation, classification by type becomes crucial.

Present Award Structure

Leading game ceremonies offer these classifications covering Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Together, these classifications actually cover numerous genres, and you can find room accommodating various experiences.

Not so for puzzle games. No appropriate category exists for their placement. Consider three of recent excellent titles, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles from a specific release, intense tile-matching in a different title, and the sweetly sociological logic puzzles of a third title. Where could they possibly go between these six categories? Unfortunately, nowhere.

The Representation Problem

Numerous examples exist outstanding logic titles released every year that have no home in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.

  • An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated in any category in 2014
  • A different innovative game missed out during that ceremony
  • Well-received sorting experience was overlooked in 2021
  • Limited numbers of brain-teasers scraped into independent or mobile categories

Importance of Logic Titles

Commonly they're compact experiences, yet the craft of the puzzle game is of massive significance. Well-known matching games stand as the most-played games worldwide and have been for many years.

The iconic tile-matching title rivals well-known building titles 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, and engaging across multiple categories.

Recommendation and Reasoning

Brain-teasers wouldn't encounter such difficulty. It would be easy to populate a field of five with fascinating, diverse, deserving games each ceremony simply — perhaps, with difficulty, because you’d have to leave numerous deserving experiences.

To emphasize again, these include experiences lacking appropriate categories during prominent ceremonies. Logic title developers are working at the demanding boundary of video game design, producing among essential manifestations of the video game form. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they merit acknowledgment. Let’s not keep them waiting decades.

Erin Pugh
Erin Pugh

Aria is a seasoned casino analyst with over a decade of experience in slot machine mechanics and gaming strategies.