In this article I will detail several concepts and techniques for creating great puzzles. These concepts can be used to improve your existing puzzles or to help complete or refine your puzzle designs. Sequence Puzzles Most puzzles require the player to do actions in a certain sequence to solve them. The simplest form of this … Read morePuzzle Design Concepts Part 1
Complexity and Difficulty Puzzle difficulty is important to manage. If your game is too easy it will be boring for players; if your game is too difficult it will be more frustrating than fun. You need to find the right balance of difficulty, both in individual puzzles and in the game as a whole. You … Read moreManaging Difficulty in Puzzle Games
The Practical Side of Puzzle Design Before you can learn how to come up with great puzzle ideas, you’ll need a technique for recording your ideas. in a tangible form. This will vary according to your personal preferences and strengths. You could build puzzles directly in your game engine (or a level designer built into … Read moreHow to Design Puzzles: Puzzle Ideas
Once you have your puzzle mechanics chosen, it’s time to start designing puzzles using those mechanics. But before you can start creating puzzles you need to understand puzzles, how they work, and what makes them fun and challenging for players. Puzzle Theory A puzzle is a challenge that needs to be overcome. Get to the … Read morePuzzle Design Theory 101
Whether you have a ground-breaking unique puzzle mechanic nobody has ever seen before or are reinventing some tried-and-true classics like a block-pushing game, how you choose and use your puzzle mechanics is what will make your game shine. Mechanics A game’s mechanics are the ways the player and game interact. The Witness’s main mechanic is mazes; Hue’s … Read morePuzzle Game Mechanics