What are the best puzzle games on PC?

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Jan 9, 2024

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Portal 2 vs The Talos Principle vs The Room

vs Infinifactory vs TIS-100 vs Inside vs The Witness vs Syberia vs Antichamber vs The Turing Test vs Myst vs Botanicula vs The Cave vs Human: Fall Flat vs Human Resource Machine vs Mini Metro vs SpaceChem vs Baba Is You vs Gorogoa vs Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes vs Hexcells vs Syberia 2 vs Perspective vs Minecraft vs Marvel Puzzle Quest vs Opus Magnum vs Supraland vs Pony Island vs Vessel vs English Country Tune vs Bridge Constructor Portal vs sokobond vs Return of the Obra Dinn vs DROD: Gunthro and the Epic Blunder vs Superliminal vs Call of the Sea vs HuniePop vs Jahooma's LogicBox (Commercial) vs Great Permutator vs Filament - base game vs Magrunner: Dark Pulse vs The Swapper vs Portal Stories: Mel vs Zork I vs Area 86 vs Resident Evil 2 vs Possession 1881 vs pass vs Aura-The Sacred Rings vs Flux Caves

Specs

Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Supported platforms

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Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Adventure, Puzzle

Platforms

Windows, Mac, Linux, Playstation 4, Android, iOS

Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Genre

Puzzle

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Co-Op

None

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Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

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Platforms

Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

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Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre

Puzzle-Platformer

Platforms

Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Genre

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Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Mostly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Puzzle

Platforms

PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Bulkhead Interactive

Publisher

Square Enix

Release Date

30 August 2016

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

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Steam Rating

Genre

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Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Genre

Exploration

Platforms

Co-Op

Single Player

Controller Support

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Release Date

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

2D platformer / Adventure

Platforms

Win / Mac / Linux

Co-Op

3 Player Couch

Controller Support

Full

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Genre

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Co-Op

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

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Co-Op

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

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Supported platforms

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Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Puzzle / Indie

Platforms

Co-Op

2 Player Local / 2 Player LAN

Controller Support

Full

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

License

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Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

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Steam Rating

Genre

Indie / Survival / Sandbox

Platforms

Java: Windows 10, Linux, Mac. Bedrock: Windows 10, Android and ios.

Co-Op

8 Player Online / 4 Player Couch / 8 Player LAN/ Infinite Player Servers

Controller Support

Yes

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Java can join to java. Bedrock can join to bedrock. No java and bedrock together support

Native Resolution

1080p60

License

Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Mostly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Supported platforms

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Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Puzzle

Platforms

Windows, Mac, Linux

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

License

Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Supra Games

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

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Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

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Co-Op

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Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

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Co-Op

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

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Platforms

Windows, Mac

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Puzzle (turn-based)

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

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Publisher

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Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Very Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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License

Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Overwhelmingly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

License

Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

License

Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Mostly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

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Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

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Supported platforms

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Steam Rating

Mostly Positive

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

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Supported platforms

Browser integration

Encryption methods

Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

Developer

Publisher

Release Date

Cross Platform

Native Resolution

License

GPLv2

Supported platforms

Linux,, OSX, Android, iOS, SailfishOS

Browser integration

Chrome, Firefox, Qutebrowser

Encryption methods

GnuPG

Steam Rating

Genre

Platforms

Co-Op

Controller Support

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Publisher

Release Date

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Steam Rating

Positive

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Pros + Cons

Pro
Mind bending puzzling

The game challenges your brain to use portals, cubes, and other mechanics to solve simple or complex puzzles in interesting ways. Trying to figure out the best placement of entrance and exit portals in order to gain access to (perceived) inaccessible places takes a lot of thought, especially in the later game.

Comment

Pro
Cross-platform co-op

As long as both players have a Steam account, the co-op is able to be played even if one user is playing on the PS3 while the other is on a PC.

Comment

Pro
Larger in scope than the first title

Portal 2 is larger in every way when compared to the first title, from the longer and more detailed story to the larger levels and new game mechanics. This makes for a title that will last 8-9 hours minimum, with many elements that are worth revisiting, not to mention the co-op section of the game, which is separate from the single player story.

Comment

Pro
Co-op does not punish when you want to goof off with or troll the other player

While Portal 2 requires focus and logic, it does not punish players for causing a bit of mischief. The instant respawn system means trolling your friend will affect almost nothing in the game, as there are no in-game setbacks when you die. Being able to stop at any point in the game to just goof around is great for releasing some steam, even when it is at the expense of your co-op partner.

Comment

Con
No replay value

Since its a puzzle game, once you know the solution, there is no reason to play again.

Comment

Pro
Unique co-op levels with co-op specific tools

In Portal 2, co-op is a completely different set of puzzles than the single player campaign. Almost all puzzles require a high level of teamwork that will leave you feeling proud of what you have accomplished. In a game that requires prefect timing and teamwork, Portal 2 features many tools to facilitate teamwork. One of the most helpful is a 3 second countdown timer that can be initiated and shown to both players to insure you launch that portal or jump at the perfect time. In addition, there is a marker that you can place on certain objects for your teammate to see as well as a setting that shows your partners view super-imposed on the corner of your screen.

Comment

Pro
Witty and funny character driven story

Four major characters drive the single player campaign and they are amazing. Three of which have explosive personalities, bring humor, suspense, sadness, and empathy, the other being Chell who doesn’t speak but her interactions with the rest of the cast make her all the more mysterious and interesting. Most of the time you don’t even see or directly interact with the characters but that just shows how great they are.

Comment

Pro
Both online co-op and local co-op

It is possible to play a multiplayer game for free online using the Steam servers, as well as locally on your machine using split-screen (the second player must use a gamepad controller if playing locally).

Comment

Pro
Humorous voice acting by Stephen Merchant

Stephen Merchant (Extras, The Office UK, Life's Too Short) voices the character of Wheatley the robot in humorous fashion.

Comment

Pro
Hundreds of hours of user-generated content

The game has 60.000+ co-op items created by users through the Steam Workshop as well as mods. As it's user-generated content, the quality and size is highly varied. It includes everything from basic one-off chambers to full-fledged expansions with high-quality stories, voice-overs and new gameplay elements, like Mel.

Comment

Pro
Well implemented tools that improve teamwork

In a game that requires perfect timing and teamwork, Portal 2 features many tools to facilitate teamwork. One of the most helpful is a 3-second countdown timer that can be initiated and shown to both players to ensure you launch that portal or jump at the perfect time. In addition, there is a marker that you can place on certain objects for your teammate to see as well as a setting that shows your partner's view super-imposed on the corner of your screen.

Comment

Pro
Allows for harmless trolling

While Portal 2 requires focus and logic, it does not punish players for causing a bit of mischief. The instant re-spawn system means trolling your friend will affect almost nothing in the game. Except maybe your friendship.

Comment

Pro
Huge selection of user-generated content that should appeal to any use-case

The game has more than 60,000 co-op puzzles created by users through the Steam Workshop and through mods. Because it is user-generated content, the quality and size of these puzzles vary widely, including everything from simple, one-off chambers to full-fledged expansions with high-quality stories, voice-overs, and new gameplay elements (for example, Mel). By having such a selection of content, there should be something that appeals to just about anything someone is looking for.

Comment

Con
Only available on Steam

Not available through other game channels.

Comment

Pro
Versatile selection of co-op multiplayer

It’s possible to play a multiplayer game for free online using the Steam servers, as well as locally on your machine using split-screen (the second player must use a gamepad controller if playing locally). This keeps the multiplayer options versatile to any players needs.

Comment

Pro
Entertaining and well delivered voice acting

Voice acting for Wheatley the robot is done by Stephen Merchant (Extras, The Office UK, Life's Too Short) in humorous fashion. His delivery is well executed on all dialogue. On top of this specific experience, the rest of the voice acting of every other character in the game is performed just as well, in part due to the fact that the dialogue was written in a smart and entertaining fashion. This makes for a top quality listening experience that shows a lot of care was taken with the voice acting of the game.

Comment

Pro
Creates a sense of accomplishment through a high level of teamwork

Co-op multiplayer offers a completely different set of puzzles from the single-player campaign, which keeps things fresh for those that finished the single player campaign. Almost all co-op puzzles require a high level of teamwork, creating a great sense of accomplishment for the players working together.

Comment

Con
Main co-op campaign is short

The co-op campaign in Portal 2 is about 4 hours long for experienced players, meaning it could be beaten in a weekend. With almost zero replayability this makes the game feel incredibly short. Luckily, there's hundreds of hours of user-generated content available.

Comment

Con
It's already on every coop list since 2011

haha funny

Comment

Con
Steep co-op learning curve

Although the single player campaign features a gradual learning curve, co-op gives no mercy. The puzzles start off hard and only get harder. It is very recommended that you play through single player first if your are not familiar with Portals mechanics.

Comment

Con
Late game single player can be quite difficult

While the single player learning curve is quite gradual, late game the puzzles can become quite difficult, sometimes leading to the player being stuck for long stretches of time. While not impossible to solve, some creative thinking will need to be done in order to finish.

Comment

Pro
So large in scope that it takes multiple playthroughs to see everything

Comment

Pro
Challenging puzzles that require creative thinking

The game challenges your brain to use portals, cubes and other mechanics in order to solve simple and complex puzzles in interesting ways. Trying to figure out the best placement of entrance and exit portals in order to gain access to (perceived) inaccessible places takes a lot of thought, especially in the later game.

Comment

Con
Single player mode is annoying

[add description]

Comment

Pro
Difficulty ramp-up

Starts out easy enough, but gets to some truly difficult puzzles by the end. If you get stuck on a puzzle you can skip it and come back to it later.

Comment

Pro
Lots of side content

Many easter eggs and more difficult puzzles as well as an ending in many parts of the game, as well as hidden lore.

Comment

Pro
Great storyline

The puzzles in the game are great, but they're tied together with a thought provoking story line filled with mystery and intrigue. A story about a robot with human consciousness who is being guided by a disembodied voice, are they to be trusted? As the story progresses the player is drip fed clues which can lead them closer to the truth.

Comment

Pro
Rewards exploration and out-of-the-box thinking

It's hard to explain this without spoiling anything, but there are lots of "aha!" moments you will encounter on the areas if you get invested into the story, making the game deeper.

Comment

Pro
Great original soundtrack

The soundtrack is very pleasant to listen to and fits perfectly with all the areas and themes present in the game. It varies from calm music, for those heavenly areas where you are solving puzzles, to more misterious and epic pieces for moments when things get... real. It's good to have some nice music playing while your brain is melting from solving the puzzles, or just appreciating the scenery.

Comment

Con
Obtuse puzzles, especially with optional content

Mediocre game design all around. Many puzzles are ordered badly or redundant and could have been combined or removed to smoothen the experience, as well as occasionally not exercising the bounds of certain elements (like ranged pickup). The game's optional content is even more worrisome as it often leads you to play hidden object games to look in hundreds of corners instead of using more difficult puzzles. One particularly egregious example is when you have to interpret a message in a very specific way after using a decryption algorithm you may not know about into another questionable input system.

Comment

Con
Bland story

The story isn't a story ... it's more of far fetched thin glue between random puzzles.

Comment

Con
Ending troubles

After getting the "normal" ending you will have to replay the entire game again if you want to find everything you missed. Replaying a puzzle game isn't that fun when you already know the puzzles.

Comment

Con
Working with the level editor is difficult (no documentation)

There is not much documentation for the level editor in the game, as the creators primarily use it for themselves. There are of course many hotkeys you could accidentally press as well.

Comment

Pro
A good variety of puzzle types makes sure that the game never repeats or gets tiring

You'll have to find clues, interpret symbols, use correct items in appropriate places to unearth the mystery of the room.

Comment

Pro
Great atmosphere is set by the wonderful music and well done design

Due to an excellent choice of music and incremental telling of a dark story, the game creates a nice bit of tension and a creepy vibe in an otherwise simple and calm game.

Comment

Pro
Immersive

[add description]

Comment

Pro
Amazing graphics allow for a level of detail not always found on mobile games

The Room has very detailed graphics that show the intricacies of all the items.

Comment

Pro
Soothing and relaxing

The actions of searching without time limit combined with music and light creates a soothing experience.

Comment

Con
Ends abruptly

The Room is relatively short. Experienced players will be able to beat it in less than two hours. And it ends abruptly. Luckily there is a sequel.

Comment

Con
The control scheme can get slightly frustrating

The touch controls of navigating in 3D can be difficult at times.

Comment

Pro
Sticks with you

The puzzles that you don't finish right away stick with you when you aren't playing. You end up trying to solve them in your head.

Comment

Pro
Gives feeling of accomplishment

The puzzles in game are challenging and once solved the satisfaction of being able to watch a completed machine work correctly is quite addicting.

Comment

Pro
Incremental puzzle solving that creates lasting gameplay

The majority of puzzles can not be solved by just looking at the level. It will take a lot of trial and error to get the puzzle solved in slow single steps. This makes for longevity of each puzzle.

Comment

Con
Not many convenience mechanics near lategame

In the second part of Infinifactory the game starts focusing on large inputs and large outputs. This means trying to get them welded in the proper order takes more effort (to build AND to test), and this stretches and pads the game when you want to get to the part where you are trying to figure out your unique solution.

Comment

Pro
User created gifs upon finish

The game allows the user to create a gif of the working machine upon completion that can be shared with friends or uploaded to websites.

Comment

Con
Puzzles become difficult really soon

The difficulty curve is pretty high for Infinifactory in that once the user learns the ropes of gameplay the puzzles start getting really difficult and do not ease up.

Comment

Pro
Teaches actual coding

The game is basically text based which means users will have to actually type in code in order to play. This makes for a learning experience for those unfamiliar with coding due to actually having to code in order to play.

Comment

Pro
Competitive score comparing

TIS-100 has a leaderboard function for all 45 puzzles in the game which allows users to compare score with friends and random online players. This way people can see how high they rank in comparison to all other players.

Comment

Con
No in game tutorial makes it difficult to learn

There is no hand-holding with this game, no in-game tutorial makes it difficult to know how to play. Though there is a PDF manual that can be printed out.

Comment

Con
Style of interface to a certain expense of your comfort

Somehow related to "no tutorial" con: this game won't feel as robust as it does if it felt like a game, but it manages to feel almost like an obscure machine that you've found in your attic. This could be off-putting to some of us.

Comment

Pro
Replayability through a never ending sandbox creation mode

Users can create their own puzzles in the 3 available sandbox modes in game. This allows for users to come back to the game over and over to create custom puzzles and experience something different each time making for a lot of replayability.

Comment

Pro
Unparalleled creepy yet intoxicating atmosphere

This game's world is colorless and soundless, which makes the bright player character really stand out. Occasional sound cues add to the tense and creepy atmosphere.

Comment

Con
Arcade Game

Can you TECHNICALLY call this a 'Puzzle Game'...perhaps, BUT: This is more of an arcade game. You remember those games that you had to dump a ton of quarters into in order to 'figure out' What the developer Wanted You To Do?? Those games were designed to make you Try things Over and Over AND dump more quarters into the machine<<<period. A Puzzle Game, on the other hand, is just that...A Puzzle Game.<<You Don't have to just Keep Trying Things until you finally stumble onto what the developer wanted you to do. A Puzzle Game just gives you a puzzle to solve. A true Puzzle Game just gives you a puzzle that can be LOGICALLY solved. You wouldn't, necessarily, even have to be playing the game at the time to solve the puzzle. You could work it out in your head. Those puzzles can be incorporated into a mystery, adventure, etc. etc. but they are still just PUZZLES like the ones at miller world inc. The second that you have to start 'Trying Things' to see what works, you aren't ACTUALLY playing a puzzle game. You are back into the Arcade Game genre.

Comment

Con
Very short

Only from 2 to 3 hours long.

Comment

Pro
Remarkable storytelling via environmental navigation

The story is told through exploring and there is no written exposition or dialogue, so the story is left up to the player's interpretation.

Comment

Pro
Awesome atmospheric graphics

The graphics convey a rich atmosphere that will make your skin crawl.

Comment

Pro
Thought provoking world

Even if some of the puzzles are rage-inducingly hard, the world of the Witness is really peaceful. It's an uninhabited island littered with stone statues and mismatched environments. Yet none of it feels out of place. It is really intriguing to explore each new area, especially because you can find voice recordings in them. At first these may seem like simple audio logs, but each one contains essential clues to gently shift your thought process. To succeed you need to shift your perspective and think outside the box.

Comment

Pro
Cleverly designed puzzles

All of the puzzles use a simple concept where you draw a line from point A to point B to solve them. This could get old really fast, but the developer has thought of many ways to keep it fresh. While the regular variants are just maze puzzles, they gradually get new layers added to them. It can be symbols you have to separate, panels you have to look at from different angles or clues in the environment. Even after solving around 300 puzzles, the new puzzles you encounter will still feel exciting.

Comment

Pro
Mysterious world with no tutorial

There is no tutorial in the beginning of the game about anything, hints can be found by exploring in the island.

Comment

Pro
Vivid graphics make you want to explore

Everything about this game leads you toward exploration, even the graphics. They're very vibrant and feel alive, invoking in you a sense of wonder. This is thanks to a great variety of colors, ranging from wild, hot pinks to more subdued ocean tones. The colors are also used contrast the environments and make them stand out. For example, there's a location painted orange autumn colors next to a grayish-white quarry.

Comment

Pro
Challenges

Each area has some kind of challenge to solve to unlock something (most of them activate a laser and the laser is the only thing to activate).

Comment

Pro
Deeply interconnected puzzles, environment and narrative

[add description]

Comment

Con
Some puzzles might be impossible for the colorblind and hearing impaired

Certain puzzles use colors to hint at the solution. If you're not able to tell them apart it may be impossible to solve the puzzles. There are also that puzzles require you to listen to the sounds in the environment and use them for the solution. Some of them are masked with sound effects such as car horns or birds chirping, making the puzzles hard to solve. This becomes a lot more difficult if your hearing is impaired.

Comment

Pro
Non-linear gameplay

You can do the puzzles in any order you'd like and you can explore the island any way you'd like. If a puzzle becomes too hard you can almost always find another one.

Comment

Pro
Enchanting graphic design

The simple but colorful graphics create an enchanting and immersive atmosphere.

Comment

Con
A mistake

At the quarry, there is a mistake when you trigger the platform to move in the second part of the quest to activate a laser, it won't stop and it can't return. so if you missed the platform you will probably have to restart the game and try again. Edit: this has been patched out as soon as it was released, so if you're a dirty pirate, you might have a problem with this.

Comment

Con
May cause nausea

Puzzles are fun, but some people might get motion sickness with first-person games that involve walking around.

Comment

Pro
Brilliant puzzles

The primary theme to puzzles in Antichamber is that things aren't how they appear. If you walk down a hallway and turn around, you might be in a totally different area. This leads to some incredibly interesting and difficult puzzles, forcing you to think about the world around you in a totally new way.

Comment

Pro
Wise quotes

[add description]

Comment

Pro
Unique minimalist visuals

Using stark white halls with glowing colors there is a minimal beauty to Antichamber. One room houses great abstract art which changes depending on which way you are looking at it.

Comment

Pro
Good for speed running

A great game to put your speed skills to the test! Great for those who love any percent speedruns!

Comment

Pro
Lateral thinking

[add description]

Comment

Pro
Hidden puzzles

Hidden puzzles in every chapter are awesome.

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Con
Easy puzzles

This is an easy puzzle game. it was better if it had harder puzzles.

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Pro
Depth, aesthetics, and Worldbuilding

Myst had beautiful (for its time, astounding) art direction and music/sound design, and puzzles that had a real logic to them in most cases, that felt like a plausible part of the world, not just tacked onto it. Riven was even more this way. Riven was incredibly hard at times but really, really well thought out. in wordbuilding and credibility terms. The designers at Cyan clearly cared about building rich gameworlds with a real sense of history behind them, and it shows.

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Con
Tech of 1993 Myst is now 28 years old. There are more modern versions of it though.

Myst is now -as of fall 2021 - just over 28 years old. There are remakes however, the 2021 VR version actually looks quite nice for the most part even by modern standards. But the original 1993 UI and visuals are of course dated and not ideal as a Myst experience for new players aside from being a good history lesson.

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Pro
Depth

Every single element of the game is thought of, and while it's a puzzle, it doesn't feel like it. Nothing seems out of place or there for the sake of the puzzles.

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Con
Graphics

Being more than 25 years old, the graphic of Myst are not the sharpest ones out there.

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Pro
Graphics border on being art

The fantastic visual in the game is remiss of art one would see in a pop art gallery.

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Con
Simplistic "puzzles"

This game can hardly be qualified as a puzzle game, no abstract, nor lateral thinking needed.

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Pro
Cheesy jokes of the best kind

The Cave has a good sense of humor within, something expected when considering the game was created by the same people as The Secret of Monkey Island.

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Pro
Levels have multiple paths, encouraging discovery

As you make your way through the game world, you will encounter a variety of different environmental puzzles that block your path to the exit. However, getting stuck or stumped is rarely a problem as most levels have multiple paths that you can find. With a little exploration, you should be able to discover an alternate route to bypass the environmental puzzle that is giving you problems. This gives the player an opportunity to replay levels in a different way, and discover each level in its entirety.

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Pro
Very funny

The playable character in this game moves around like a boneless blob of jelly learning to walk for the first time, making for some silly animations and awkward movements. Animations and interactions are over animated and cartoonish which can lead to some hilarious - whether intentional, and most oftentimes unintentional - consequences such as falling off edges, flailing around, and knocking yourself over.

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Pro
Oddly rewarding control scheme

Being able to maneuver your bloblike character efficiently takes some skill, and as a result, feels rewarding once it's mastered. One of the things players will initially notice with the controls is that walking and jumping work as one would expect, however there is a very pronounced wobble and bounce to it. The playable character controls like a boneless blob of jelly, making each step and interaction look cartoonish and overly-animated in nature. These controls take some getting used to, but add a level of charm to the animation. Additionally, your left and right arms are controlled separately which is very unique among games. This is utilized in many of the game's puzzles such as holding yourself against a column with one arm, while using the other to move or manipulate another object into place.

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Pro
Fantastic physics

Objects can be pushed, pulled, swung, and dragged around in a variety of ways as they collide into each other, fly through the air, spin, and twist - often with a low-gravity type effect. Pushing, pulling, and dragging objects just has a satisfying feel that makes you feel like each object has mass and density, and is a part of the world.

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Pro
You can personalize your avatar with colors and textures

Included with the game is a basic paint option which allows players to customize their avatar. Selecting colors from a palette, you can paint your avatar's head, hat, and body using a variety of different brush sizes. Additionally, you are able to upload your own pictures (such as your own face) and apply them to areas of your personalized avatar as a texture. It's a great way for players to give their avatar a personal touch and make themselves stand out during co-op games.

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Pro
Good progression of difficulty

The levels gradually become physically bigger and more challenging as you progress throughout the game. This gives us time to get used to how the character controls as well as how the puzzles operate. As you advance, the puzzles become increasingly more difficult, and the levels become increasingly wider. By building upon what you are learning in previous levels, there's a distinct sense of progression from one level to the next.

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Pro
Playing co-op with your friends adds a whole new experience to the puzzle solving

Playing co-op with your friends allows you to reach new areas and solve puzzles that you can't do in solo play. Puzzles can be overcome and solved differently based on the number of players. For example, when playing alone you may find something you can't possibly lift or move yourself. However, add a friend into the mix and now you're able to work together to lift and move that object. Ledge you can't quite reach yourself? Have a friend give you a boost!

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Pro
Hilarious co-op mode

Playing co-op is where the hilarity and fun in this game truly shines. It's quite satisfying to push and bump your teammates around, even if that includes sending them plummeting over the edge of tall structures. There's nothing quite like slapping your friend's character, only to see them fall, slip, and bounce around the levels. It's funny to watch them struggle to get their bearings back, only to give them another good slap and watch them flail around all over again. Solving puzzles with your friends can result in some humorous situations as you accidentally slap and knock each other over trying to accomplish even the simplest of tasks.

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Con
Not much visual appeal

This game doesn't contain much in the way of vibrant colors, interesting shapes, or textures. Mostly everything in the game is a shaded, blocky object that only consists of a few plain colors. Having an entire world populated by boring shapes and washed-out colors results in an environment without much visual appeal.

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Con
Short

The game is too short and will leave you wanting more. The solo campaign clocks in at about 6 hours of game play.

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Con
Can cause motion sickness due to camera shaking

The excessive camera shaking causes a lot of players to experience motion sickness, and at the time of this writing can not be modified to a lower setting or disabled. Even if you aren't considered sensitive, you should still take precautions. Perhaps this will be solved in a future update.

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Pro
Can optimize your solutions

The game's replay value increases as solutions can be beat in two metrics: Commands and Steps.

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Pro
Good graphics and sound

The game is very reminiscent of World of Goo's graphics, being very consistent and sort of cartoony, and all sounds are synthesized.

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Con
Short for price (especially for people looking to learn)

This game contains about 5 hours of content for many players, and is composed of 3 "chapters" of about 11 levels each. Most of that is taken up by tutorials. Each chapter 'dives in' a little bit into a topic. But if you're looking to learn programming it'll likely be too short. It also has many mini levels where it shows a little topic, but those are not explored that much (one of the worst moments with it is when it asks you to "use a friendly search box" as a serious recommendation). (Note: This game actually is appearing in a Humble Bundle for $1 by the time of writing.)

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Con
Lack of optimization accuracy

One pro about games like this are the fact that you can optimize your solutions. But the marked "Best" solution is almost always inaccurate. Some levels are tens of blocks and hundreds of steps away. You'll have to go to other places to challenge yourself properly.

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Con
Levels are unoriginal

Related to the game's story not doing much, the gameplay also does not integrate itself with any cool story events that may happen, as they don't happen. You don't lose abilities, nothing gets 'screwed up', and the game doesn't last long enough to be able to explore the game's concept in depth. What this means is that the levels are more by-the-book as if they were programming puzzles in a book, and if you've played many games of this similar genre you've already seen about 80% of the puzzles in the game, in which most of the remaining ones are early tutorial puzzles.

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Con
Frustrating interface at later levels

The game does not show you every part of your program at once. At later stages, even about 20 instructions will require scrolling to reach parts of your program. Even with about 30, it quickly becomes tedious to move around your instructions as you will either have to wait for scrolling or spam the scroll wheel. Many of your solutions will also be using one of the 'blue' commands, which has two arrows, so you cannot just delete the key instruction and add a copy to where you want it to go.

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Con
Awful debugging

The game's debugging features consist of a step forward button, a step back button, and fast forwarding (up to about 4x). However, these are not enough. In many levels you could find yourself noticing your program is stuck in a loop, then having to repeatedly click "Step back" dozens of times just to find the key moment, which is even worse if you were fully fast forwarding. In later levels, where solutions start taking some more time, it might take minutes to find the key moment in your program that failed to work, just to wait more to figure out if the change you made was enough to get it to work.

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Con
Story is disappointing

The game's story does not progress very far. With a premise as interesting as tying into the "machines taking over jobs and humans", you'd expect gameplay and levels as unique. But the game plays as stock as a programming game can get, even just on the story standpoint. Many details are shown around the game, but the game doesn't go deep for anything involving it.

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Pro
Soothing gameplay

Minimalist design and relaxing music makes this a very different experience from the bustle of some others. A minimal zen like game that allows one to relax while playing. While gameplay may get hectic there are modes of play that do not allow for losing meaning that you can relax and just play without worry.

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Pro
Deep open ended puzzle mechanic

With each station that appears and line you get, the amount of combinations increase exponentially. With so many combinations it's impossible, even for a computer to guarantee an optimal solution. This creates very deep puzzle gameplay with many ways to solve and improve the metro system.

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Con
Casual gameplay

There is less depth than in many of the games listed which may not be quite what is required here.

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Pro
Very minimal puzzle sim aspects

Very basic and abstract in design and gameplay the user uses limited resources in order to create the most effective routes for a transportation system.

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Con
Takes a while to get the hang of

Learning the game may take some time, though the mechanics are not too difficult to grasp, the gameplay itself can be frustrating.

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Pro
Light on the system

The system requirements are quite low at only requiring a 2Ghz processor, 1G of ram and 300MB of hard drive space. Basically this game should work on just about any computer from the last 10-15 years.

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Pro
Endless gameplay through user created solutions

An individual players choices of components, arrangements or factories used will result in completely different experiences and problems/puzzles when compared to another users experience. A truly individualized experience that expands the games replayability.

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Pro
Allows for short or long play sessions

The gameplay allows for a player to come in and solve a single puzzle in a short amount of time or to sit and tinker with a puzzle for hours trying to devise the perfect solution and contraption. It all comes down to what one want to put into the game but the free form of the puzzle solving is what makes it great for anyones playstyle be it short or long.

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Pro
Easy to learn, hard to master puzzle

Spacechem's mechanics are pretty simple to learn and only takes minutes to understand how the game works. Of course mastering the gameplay is a whole different matter.

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Pro
Could help with real life programming skills

In particular, abstraction and concurrent programming skills could be gleaned from the game as it uses broad techniques often used by computer programmers.

Comment

Con
Late game is difficult

In later levels some players may reach a point where the game has become too difficult or frustrating, which may discourage any more play time with the game.

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Pro
Innovative and unique

It won the Innovation Award at 20th Game Developers Choice Awards and is Gamemaker’s Toolkit’s most innovative game of 2019.

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Pro
Over 200 levels

The game has content for over 50 hours playing time.

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Pro
Beautiful artwork

Gorogoa feels more like a picture book than a game, containing many colorful hand-drawn stills. From interiors of houses, to foggy cityscapes, to even parks decorated by statues, there's just so much detail everywhere, making your journey through the world of Gorogoa much more enticing.

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Pro
Simple yet effective storytelling

Instead of using text and dialogue to convey the story, Gorogoa uses moving pictures to show a boy's journey to meet a godly being. Each picture contains various nuances such as paintings, statues, and symbols that shed light on the story. This gives hints about the game's world and even manages to touch upon themes of religion and spirituality. Gorogoa is the prime example when a single picture tells more than a thousand words.

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Pro
Captivating puzzle mechanics

Your goal is to create the path for a boy's journey by moving, zooming, connecting, and superimposing pictures on a 2x2 grid. For example, in a picture where the boy stands inside a closet, you can overlap the doorway with the picture of a rooftop exit, allowing the boy to step outside on the roof. It's simple but creative puzzle mechanic, which let's you feel like a reality-bending wizard, making it a really enjoyable experience.

Comment

Con
Really short

A single playthrough will last you a little under 2 hours, which might feel even shorter because of how captivating the game is. There are no hidden bonuses or anything else but the artistic value to make you replay this game.

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Pro
Bomb defusal manual is easily accessible

The manual can be viewed as a PDF download as well as a static webpage, which gives easy access to any mobile device as well as PC. On top of this the manual can be printed out for those that would rather navigate tactically, which is often the easier way to go due to touch and ease of flipping pages (over a tablet or phone). Basically you are able to pull up the manual in any way you prefer, which requires little preparation, even on short notice.

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Con
Morse code section difficult for those with dry or bad eyes

There is a morse code module section of the game that relays morse code through visual cues, in order to understand the code the player will need to not blink for 3 seconds straight. While for most players this is not an issue, those that have chronic dry eyes or any other condition that requires blinking a lot, the code will be difficult if not impossible to understand. An optimal solution would be a setting to change this to audio cues, but sadly that is not an option.

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Pro
Hilarious situations arise as tension increases

Both sides in the game can not see what the other does, this creates a situation of confusion that needs a good bit of team work. Of course there being a bomb that needs defused adds to the tension of this difficult communication situation.

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Pro
Great for parties due to its communication-based asymmetrical puzzle gameplay

One person has the bomb on screen, 1-5 "experts" need to consult the PDF manual. Thing is, the bomb defuser doesn't see the manual, the experts don't see the bomb with its various modules. As many people as you want can participate in the game when describing what is in the manual, which makes it great for parties in unison with its communication-based asymmetrical puzzle gameplay.

Comment

Con
Puzzles may become stale after repetitive play

Particular modules in the game may be seen after playing repeatedly, which will make for easier play and quicker puzzle solving. This will have a tendency to make the gameplay feel stale due to ones familiarity with the puzzles.

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Pro
Has many puzzles

There are three games in the series, the best being Hexcells Infinite. After you beat the main 36 puzzles, there are a few million other puzzles more.

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Pro
Unique platforming with 2D and 3D mechanics

The gist is that the game is played like a 2D platformer, but the twist is that once stuck the player can click the mouse and then change the perspective of the game in a 3D environment, which will change how the level is laid out. This makes for a creative way to interact with the game and solve puzzles.

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Pro
Very stylistic

The game makes one question what is going on as when the perspective view is being changed there are glimpses of odd things like arcade machines. On top of this, the music will adjust to the player changing the view making for an experience where the game is reacting to what you are doing with the view. Overall this makes for an immersive and weird experience that has a style all its own.

Comment

Con
Somewhat limited in features

No time trial mode, no extra puzzle modes, just one core game mode, which once beaten is it. The game would be better with more to do, but sadly there is nothing extra on offer.

Comment

Con
Lack of meaningful story mode

There is no story mode in Minecraft: there is only a create mode or a survival mode. Neither, however, supply any kind of story or background as regard what is going on in the game.

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Pro
Endless ways to solve challenges

There's no single way to solve any challenge. You're free to make machines that work in a small space in a few steps, or a wide, spread-out space in a series of longer steps. As you progress and become more skilled at the game by completing each task, you'll naturally find ways to optimize the process.

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Pro
Community-generated puzzles offer plenty of replay value

Online play in Opus Magnum includes player-created puzzles to solve, expanding the scope of the game well past the available challenges in the campaign. The in-game editor offers ways to create new products with a set of reagents, mechanisms, and glyphs, with an incredible amount of possibilities and combinations of puzzles.

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Pro
Fun experimentation

Making machines more efficient involves narrowing down the cost of parts, the speed of the working machine, or the space that the mechanisms and glyphs take up. Using cheaper parts may cause the machine to work slower, or having a faster machine might take up more space on the field. It's up to you to experiment and find the best solution.

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Pro
The game mechanics are explained well

As part of the story, you are an alchemy graduate from the Imperial University’s College of Alchemical Engineering, tasked with creating workable solutions to a number of tasks, such as turning lead into gold or making a sealant to water-proof ships. You then have a set of available reagents, like lead and quicksilver. You must align moving metallic mechanisms and sets of glyphs that engineer the reagents into the final product. The game does a great job at explaining the purpose of each tool at your disposal and how each part fits into the working puzzle.

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Con
Story mode feels short

With so many puzzles to solve in so many different ways, the 20-hour campaign can go by too quickly. Opus Magnum more than makes up for this with replay value in making more optimal machines, as well as the player-created puzzles.

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Pro
Interesting puzzles

While BCP at its core is a game about building bridges so your forklift can pass, the sci-fi elements of the Portal series make it a lot more interesting. This includes sentry turrets that try to destroy your forklift along the way, gel that speeds up your forklift letting it ascend almost vertical slopes, and even portals that allow travel between distant locations, creating solutions to seemingly impossible scenarios. It's simply fun to solve the many puzzles found in the game.

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Pro
Decent amount content for its price

While most puzzle games in this price range usually take only a few hours to beat, BCP has a total of 60 levels, taking about 10 hours for a full first time playthrough. You can even choose between a regular and a hard version of a level, further adding to the playtime.

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Con
Can seem a little bland in its presentation

It has a simple visual style that uses very little color, the soundtrack gets repetitive fairly quickly, and the story feels like an afterthought. The puzzles are the main focus of BCP, but it feels like the developers might've forgotten about every other aspect of the game.

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Con
Can feel frustrating

BCP relies heavily on trial and error, requiring you to build very precise and efficient bridges that don't make much sense initially. Because of this, your well-reasoned and carefully planned bridge might not work at all, which can be really frustrating. So unless you're a really patient player that's willing to try over and over, you probably won't enjoy BCP.

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Pro
Challenging puzzles

Once completed, they reward you with "juicy knowledge" about chemistry.

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Pro
Many puzzles have additional optional challenges.

Challenges are not required to complete the game, but provide many hours of gameplay for hardcore players.

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Pro
Each room is handcrafted puzzle

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Comment

Pro
Unique gameplay mechanics

It's turn-based puzzle, each turn you can either walk in one of 8 directions or turn by 45 degree.

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Pro
Games are long

There are many levels, and each level can easily take many hours to solve.

Comment

Pro
Series of 5 games

Original order is following: DROD: King Dugan's Dungeon - remake of original game: Deadly Rooms of Death. DROD: Journey to Rooted Hold DROD: The City Beneath DROD: Gunthro and the Epic Blunder - prequel to all series. Remakes of parts 1,2,3 are available as DLCs. DROD: The Second Sky - available as standalone game.

Comment

Con
DROD is not a softcore or casual game.

If you're looking for easy puzzle, DROD is not your game of choice. Puzzles difficulty range from midcore to hard.

Comment

Pro
User convenience

There are a lot of things in the game (instant feedback, scroll debugging, see everything on a single screen, aforementioned building blocks, and very open interface) that increase how convenient playing the game is. In comparison to the other games in the genre, it's a notable plus.

Comment

Con
No story

Doesn't have a story unlike other games like this (SpaceChem, Infinifactory).

Comment

Pro
Great sense of accomplishment from solving puzzles

The later levels of Magrunner offer puzzles in large areas with multiple elements to work with. Due to the scale of these puzzles, you can end up spending a decent amount of time trying to figure out everything in the room works. It ends up being very satisfying once everything clicks together and you reach the end of the room.

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Pro
Beautiful environment that evolves as the story progresses

Magrunner starts out in a bright, futuristic looking set of testing rooms that not only look appealing, but feels fitting for a facility that is testing technology for eventual space exploration. As the story becomes more serious and descends into darker tones fitting of the Cthulhu Mythos, the rooms match this shift, becoming more dimly lit and broken down. The testing facility appears to be slowly merging with Cthulhu's dimension as statues depicting monsters appearing more and more frequently as time passes. As the ritual to summon Cthulhu near completion, the environment evolves once more into a merger of mostly Cthulhu's dimension with an accent of various parts of the testing facility. Meanwhile, a shadowy Cthulhu hovers in the distance of a beautiful, but eerie, interplanetary background.

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Pro
Soundtrack adds to the ambiance of the environment

Starting off with an up-beat, electronic song, the soundtrack feels right at home for the futuristic testing facility that Magrunner begins in. As the tone of the story and the environment descends into darkness, the soundtrack matches this shift with tracks that sound more eerie and ominous. There are even points where the music takes on a random, chaotic structure, giving the soundtrack a feel of a descent into madness fitting for the Cthulhu Mythos. Combined with the occasional cries of an unknown monster and distorted voices speaking in an unknown language, the soundtrack serves as a great enhancement of the ambiance set by the environment.

Comment

Pro
Ability to change the color of the charges

The initial colors representing the magnetic charges are red and green, which may be difficulty for people with color blindness to distinguish between. There is a setting in the options that allows for the charges to be changed to red and blue.

Comment

Pro
Decent game length for the price

Magrunner consists of 40 levels that will take around 8 to 10 hours to complete, which is longer than most other puzzle games of this price.

Comment

Pro
Solid gameplay that is easy to grasp

Drawing heavy inspiration from Portal, Magrunner: Dark Pulse is another entry into the physics based puzzle genre that utilizes magnetism instead of portals. By using a special glove, which is very responsive and easy to control, you are able to give various objects a magnetic charge. The goal is to use the attraction and repulsion properties of magnets to open pathways and move around the levels. Objects are lit up as red or green to represent the two different charges an object can have. The mechanics work by having objects of the same color charge being attracted together, while being repulsed by objects of other color charge. While this opposite of how magnets work in real life, this concept is actually much easier to understand, especially when trying to deal with multiple objects at the same time. The game even offers the ability to see the magnetic field each object generates, making it easier to determine if the objects will be able to interact.

Comment

Con
Start of the game feels slow

Every time you move to a new room, whether it be an elevator for the dialogue to advance the story or into the room for the next puzzle, the game ends up on a loading screen. The load times are not very long, usually around 5 seconds, but because the start of the game has multiple elevator rides and quick, easy to solve puzzles, there will be a lot of loading screens in the beginning, making the pacing feel a little too drawn out.

Comment

Con
Monsters felt uninspired and awkward

The Cthulhu Mythos is one filled with deities and monsters that drive people insane from a mere glimpse. However, the monsters in Magrunner are anything but horrifying. The models for the monsters do not look terrifying compared to other games and are plagued by awkward and clunky movements. This results in a disappointment of the petrifying potential the Cthulhu Mythos has to offer and the eerie ambiance set up by the soundtrack and environment.

Comment

Con
Puzzles can be very frustrating, mostly near the end

Puzzles near the end can be rather difficult to solve for a multitude of reasons. The large scale of some of the rooms as well as multiple elements to work with at a time can make it overwhelming when determining the solution for reaching the next stage. Additional complicating factors can include having to change an object's charge from a distance, ensuring that the timing for changing an object's charge is correct to get the desired effect, and some difficult platforming jumps. A combination some or all of these variables can result in a lot of frustration when trying to solve a puzzle and might drive a player to using a walkthrough or outright quitting.

Comment

Con
Lack of replayability

Since the whole point of Magrunner is solving puzzles, the thrill of the game will be diminished upon completion as you'll know the solutions. The only reason to play again is to earn any achievements that were not earned the first time.

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