10 puzzle games to keep your mind busy this September

Puzzle games are among a handful of video game genres that recognize the intelligence and logic of gamers. They come in various formats ranging from simple 2D puzzle games to full-blown-out 3D adventures in first-person or third-person view.

Puzzle games may not be the most attractive option for some, but they are always going to be played by gamers. There are very few moments in life that are as fulfilling as solving a difficult puzzle that previously left the player stuck for days. Here is a hand-picked list of some of the best puzzle games from the last two decades that will surely give you the satisfying drive to solve something challenging.

This article reflects the personal views of the author.

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10 timeless puzzle games that deserve a revisit

1) Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (2003)

• Available on: Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, Microsoft Windows, Xbox, GameCube

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time can easily go down as one of Ubisoft Studios’ best creations in the early 2000s. An action-adventure game set in a 3D platform environment, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time follows the journey of a young prince in an unknown kingdom of ancient Persia.

It's a dazzling adventure filled with dangerous traps such as spikes and pits as well as some of the most memorable puzzles in video gaming history. The story is told in extremely well-presented cutscenes, and, in terms of movement, the sense of freedom that the title offers is unparalleled.

The Prince can jump and climb across walls, slide across ledges, move objects, lean forward on a pole, and execute various other dynamic movement controls that make it a thrilling 3D platform puzzle-solving adventure from Ubisoft.

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2) The Portal Series (2007)

• Available on: Windows; Xbox 360; PlayStation 3; OS X; Linux; Android; Nintendo Switch

At number two on the list is yet another puzzle-solving adventure in first-person view made by the creators of Half-Life: The Portal Series. Portal 1 is a captivating story about humans who wake up after centuries of sleep.

Players will find themselves trapped in a gigantic futuristic facility controlled by robots. With every new test chamber, the game gets harder as the player progresses. There are plenty of puzzles involving portals to be solved in this first-person adventure, and in the later stages, everything that the player has learned will be put to the test.

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3) World of Goo (2008)

• Available on: Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, Linux, Microsoft Windows, macOS, Wii, Classic Mac OS

The World of Goo is an award-winning puzzle game that involves touch-sensitive gameplay elements easily accessible on both Steam and Android devices. Players have to control tiny sticky balls called Goo to create steady bridges at each level fraught with dangers to take as many Goo as possible to the next level.

The World of Goo is divided into four chapters, and players have to slowly make their way through each level within the chapters to win the game. It’s a fun, easy-to-play game that can be played on the go.

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4) Braid (2008)

• Available on: PlayStation 3, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Xbox 360, Classic Mac OS

Created by Hothead Games, Braid is an esthetically-pleasing 2D platform game that offers some offbeat puzzles to solve. The game follows the story of the protagonist Tim on a mission to rescue his princess from an evil monster. In terms of powers, Tim has the supernatural ability to rewind and forward time, and players must use it to fend off any enemies.

Braid’s visual appeal sets the game apart from any other 2D platform puzzle game. Each and every level of Braid is hand-drawn by artists, and the canvas art emanates a sense of calm when someone plays the game.

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5) Limbo (2010)

• Available on: Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, Android, Linux, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox 360

Limbo is a platform-puzzle game set in a beautifully designed, eerie, and dark environment. The players control a boy who finds himself lost in a deep, dark forest. The game can be divided into two equally enticing halves. While the first few chapters involve intense combat with monsters lurking deep within the forest, the second half introduces some intricate mechanical puzzles that need to be solved.

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6) Badland 2 (2015)

• Available on: Android and iOS

Developed by Frogmind Games, Badland 2 is a fairly easy-to-play touch-based puzzle game that manages to offer a meditative and soothing in-game atmosphere. Like the World of Goo, Badland 2 players are tasked with taking as many tiny black creatures to the next level as possible.

A rather addictive game, players have to guide the tiny dark creatures to avoid all the dangerous obstacles from one level to another in chapters spread over Dawn, Noon, Dusk, and Night.

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7) The Last Guardian (2016)

• Available on: PlayStation 5

The Last Guardian is a thrilling puzzle-solving action-adventure game set in a beautiful tropical paradise full of ancient ruins and lore. In the game, players take on the role of two interchangeable characters: a lost child, and his newly-made friend, a half-mammal-half-bird entity named Trico.

It's a fun puzzle-solving action-packed game, where players need to use both characters smartly to progress through the storyline. While the little child is good at crawling under small crevices to unlock certain levers and doorways, his guardian, Trico, is the ideal choice to kill any enemies along the way as the lost child tries to reunite with his family.

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8) The Witness (2016)

• Available on: PlayStation 4, Android, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, macOS, iOS, Nvidia Shield TV, Classic Mac OS

The Witness is a challenging single-player open-world puzzle game where players find themselves lost in a chain of tropical islands. The entire island is split into eleven regions, and it is up to the player to navigate them all by drawing a path connecting the start to the end-point.

This particular puzzle game features lots of maze-like structures to overcome. While many of them can be easily navigated, The Witness does offer some of the hardest-to-solve mazes found in any other open-world puzzle adventure.

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9) Baba is You (2019)

• Available on: Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Macintosh operating systems, Classic Mac OS

Baba is You is a critically acclaimed, award-winning indie puzzle game developed by individual Finnish developer Arvi Teikari. It’s a simple yet memorable puzzle involving moving objects, where the rules can be changed at each new level. Players get to control the character Baba whose aim is to reach the goal.

It’s a challenging game about bending the rules, experimenting, and somehow managing to reach the goal. Furthermore, the degree of freedom given to players to solve the puzzles is diverse.

The game offers a whole range of movement options along with the ability to rewind time. Regarded as one of the hardest puzzle games ever made, nothing feels better than coming back to an unsolved puzzle and solving it after putting it aside for a few days.

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10) TOHU (2021)

• Available on: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Google Stadia, Macintosh operating systems

Released in January 2021, TOHU is a brand-new indie puzzle game set in a unique world featuring fish planets. Players take on the role of a girl who wanders around the world of gigantic planet-sized fish with her alter ego, Cubus.

In addition to having some complex puzzles to solve, TOHU delivers a breathtakingly beautiful open world with richly detailed artwork. Each fish planet in the game is brought alive by well-made characters and interesting collectibles spread throughout the map. The title also features several relaxing soundtracks, making TOHU the ideal puzzle game to immerse oneself in this fall.