Spoilers ahead: for the puzzle and the movies/games
This page reveals all categories and answers for this puzzle. It also discusses plot details, story endings, and other spoilers for some of the movies/games shown.
easy
Developed by Toys for Bob
Star Control II · The Horde · Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure · Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time
medium
Required a non-standard peripheral
Steel Battalion · Odama · Mario Paint · Sega Bass Fishing
hard
Logs, books, and archives drive the whole game
Library of Ruina · Book of Hours · The Library of Babel · The Pale Beyond
These games treat written records as machinery. You advance by cataloguing books, studying texts, or keeping the log that holds the whole situation together.
tricky
Titles that begin with Shadow
Shadow Man · Shadow Hearts · Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun · Shadowrun
Nothing fancy here, which is why it can slip past you. Every title begins with Shadow, but the genres and eras are spread far enough apart to keep the pattern from shouting.