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Whenever a prominent awards ceremony nears, one notices a demand for introducing of new categories to acknowledge underappreciated efforts and satisfy the passions of followers dedicated to specific genres.

Another commentator previously argued for a horror game category. It would be amazing. So would strategy board titles, representing someone's personal cause. 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 above others. This is the request: We need an award type for logic-based games.

Categorizing Game Types

Organizing artistic expressions is not a science; it’s very subjective, and typically start arguments concluding with vague boundaries. There’s a reason movie academies don’t do it. However, it represents an essential concession in the world of video games, which are so diverse it's challenging to consider them one unified medium.

For comprehensive acknowledgment of gaming accomplishments to receive acknowledgment, and for games of all stripes to receive proper recognition, classification by type becomes crucial.

Current Gaming Award Categories

Prominent interactive entertainment events currently feature genre categories for Action, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Fighting, Simulation and strategy titles, and Sports/Racing games. Together, these classifications successfully include numerous genres, and you can find room for most games within them.

This doesn't apply to logic-based experiences. No appropriate category exists to accommodate them. Consider three of this year’s best games, all very different: building puzzles of one title, fast-paced pattern recognition from another release, engaging interpersonal challenges of a third title. What category would fit them within current classifications? Simply put, no category fits.

The Representation Problem

Numerous examples exist of brilliant puzzle games released every year without proper recognition in entertainment awards, except when they manage to fit classification types such as Handheld titles, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested small studio competitions.

• An iconic brain-teaser received no recognition completely in 2014
• Another creative title missed out during that ceremony
• Popular arranging title got ignored in 2021
• Only a few brain-teasers managed to sneak into independent or mobile categories

Value of Brain-Teasers

These are often modest productions, but the art behind logic titles carries substantial weight. Iconic mobile puzzle games rank among most popular titles worldwide maintaining this status for many years.

The famous puzzle experience rivals famous sandbox experiences claiming status as most purchased experience; it additionally competes for best game of all time. Puzzle games are foundational within interactive entertainment, and engaging across multiple categories.

Recommendation and Reasoning

Puzzle games wouldn’t have such difficulty. One could readily select multiple candidates interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — actually, with challenge, because you’d have to leave many worthy titles.

Restating the point, these are games that otherwise have no home in important events. Puzzle game makers function at the challenging frontier game development, producing among essential manifestations of gaming itself. Just like movie stunt professionals, they warrant appreciation. Don't make them wait generations.