Like most systems of taxonomy, video game genres are fraught with problems and debates. How do you distinguish between a “true” RPG and a game that just has RPG elements? Is every game with third-person melee combat and a dodge roll technically a soulslike? What is an action-adventure game?

I’ll leave heady questions like those to the philosophers – I’m not too interested in making everything fit into its own box. I’m much more interested in finding the smaller, weirder boxes that don’t get talked about as much. Forget genres – tell me about your favorite micro-genres!

Not sure what I’m talking about? Well, I’ll give you a few of my own favorites as examples. Just like their bigger, more popular cousins, some of these micro-genres are pretty rigidly defined, whereas others are more vibe-based.

Let’s start with a genre that’s been slowly gaining traction over the past few years: paper-likes. This is the name that I’ve given to games that draw heavy inspiration from the first two Paper Mario games. These games usually mimic Paper Mario’s “2D characters in a 3D environment” art style and feature turn-based combat with small numbers and a heavy emphasis on enemy positioning. My personal favorite paper-like is Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling, with honorable mentions going to Born of Bread and Escape From Ever After.

Now let’s loosen up with a genre I call “little guy ‘em ups,” based on a tweet I saw years ago simply stating that “games are when you’re a little guy going around.” As you might guess, this one is more of a vibe than a genre, so it’s harder to pin down what exactly puts a game in this category. Besides controlling a little guy of some sort, the core gameplay loop generally involves exploration, traversal, and/or puzzle solving, and the story generally takes a back seat. Animal Well would be my prime example, along with the original The Legend of Zelda and Stray.

Finally, let’s round things out with my absolute favorite micro-genre: the deduce ‘em up. I love this genre so much that I wrote a whole article about it, so go check that out if it sounds interesting. Simply put, these are games that require you to use deductive reasoning to solve some sort of puzzle or mystery. All the jumbled pieces of a messy story are thrown at your feet, and it’s your job to piece things together one logical connection at a time. The feeling of putting all the pieces together into a coherent whole is a high that I will continue to chase for as long as I play video games.

What I like most about discussing micro-genres is that they feel more personal. Tell me you like racing games, and I haven’t learned that much about your specific tastes. But tell me you like high-speed hovership racers (F-Zero-likes? Hyper racers?) and now I have a much clearer picture of you as a gamer.

So now it’s your turn! Sound off in the comments or in the Banter channel of our Discord – what are some of your favorite micro-genres? My only rule is that a valid micro-genre should include at least two games that are otherwise unrelated, so no strandlikes until someone other than Kojima Studios makes one. Pithy names are optional, but encouraged.

Featured Image: Mossmouth (via Hardcore Gamer)

Boss Rush Podcast – A Podcast about Video Games

The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship show of Boss Rush Media and The Boss Rush Network. Each week, hosts Corey Dirrig, LeRon Dawkins, Stephanie Klimov, and Pat Klein, as well as their friends, fellow creators, developers, and industry veterans, share their gaming experiences. They discuss what they’ve been playing, explore rotating segments, debate the Boss Rush Banter topic of the week, answer community write-ins, and more. Patreon subscribers at any tier enjoy exclusive access to the Boss Rush Podcast Patreon Show twice a month along with other perks and extras.

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