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Few things are more satisfying than completing challenging puzzle games. There are so many out there, ranging from classics like Tetris to more modern games like Portal, Keep Talking, and Nobody Explodes. They come in all shapes, sizes, and styles, but they are just a blast to tackle.
While there are hundreds and perhaps thousands of puzzle games across all consoles, here is a list of 10 that are worth trying out here in July 2022.
10 best puzzle games that players should give a go once again
Among the first puzzle video games would have to be Universal Entertainment’s Space Panic (which led to Lode Runner, Doki Doki Penguin Land and Door Door), Blockbuster, Tetris, and Minesweeper. Games for kids, and games for adults, there are all styles of puzzle titles to try.
Modern puzzle games come in a variety of styles, such as the mobile games Candy Crush Saga and Puzzle & Dragons. Puzzles have become such a big part of gaming that other genres have begun to add intense puzzles to pad out the game, or simply to add depth, like Lufia 2: Rise of the Sinistrals.
Puzzle games to revisit in July 2022
- It Takes Two
- Papers Please
- Tetris (any version)
- The Talos Principle
- Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
- Trine 4
- Baba Is You
- We Were Here Together
- Untitled Goose Game
- Portal 2
10) It Takes Two
What’s better than being frustrated by a puzzle? Playing them with a friend or a loved one! It Takes Two is one of the puzzle games on this list that requires a partner. Two players control a couple who have been turned into dolls.
In order to get out of the situation, clever platforming and problem-solving skills are need to see things through until the end.
The game has an incredible variety in how the puzzles are presented — which fit the game perfectly. It’s an adorable, clever title and is one of the best the genre has offered in recent years.
9) Papers, Please
Originally released in 2013, Papers, Please is another unique experience for PC that was eventually ported to iOS and the PlayStation Vita. The game resembles the Eastern Bloc in the fictional nation of Arstotzka, and the player controls an immigration officer. They need to make that sure each immigrant has everything they need to get into the country.
The rules and guidelines to see a person entering the country grows over time, making the game far more challenging. Players can let people in who have all the right documents, detain people who falsify their information, and balance their finances. It’s a clever, challenging game, and it does a lot to create empathy for people who are trying to start a new life through immigration; it’s simply wonderful.
8) Tetris (Any version)
There’s no bad way to play this game. From Tetris: The Grand Masters Edition to Tetris Effect, it’s been one of the most memorable puzzle games of all time.
The base game involves dropping a series of Tetrominoes (four squares arranged in a variety of geometric shapes) to create groups of lines. It sounds like a very simple game, but nothing could be further from the truth.
In Tetris, the challenge is in the ever-increasing speed of the falling blocks, and making the best of the ones that make an appearance. It’s fast-paced, tactical, and always a treat.
7) The Talos Principle
The Talos Principle is among the best puzzle games for an excellent reason. A sci-fi puzzle title, it stars an android that was brought to a world of ruins and technology. A narrative puzzle game, the android has a human consciousness, or so it seems. There are over 120 puzzles to tackle across several different biomes.
Players have to collect sigils, guarded by a variety of challenging robotic foes. It’s all about overcoming puzzles and exploring open environments that offer more narrative moments — with further challenges to overcome. It’s hard to talk about the game without spoiling the story, but it’s a deep, fascinating puzzle title.
6) Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker shows that Nintendo can get in on the genre too. Starring the titular Captain Toad, it’s an action puzzle game and a spin-off from the Mario franchise. Fans of Super Mario 3D World will remember the Captain Toad stages and will feel right at home.
What makes this so fascinating and fun is that Captain Toad cannot jump thanks to wearing a heavy backpack. He can pull plants from the ground, walk, run, and use his Super Pickaxe, but no jumping. It’s all about manipulating platforms and using the gyroscopic controls to solve puzzles. It’s cute, charming, and still quite challenging.
5) Trine 4
The Trine series has been around for quite a while, and Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince has the three heroes come together again to rescue a prince. The world is slowly being consumed by shadows, and by controlling the three characters, players can overcome objects and deal with physics puzzles and battle monsters.
The previous game was a 3D game, but this one is 2.5D. It is an improvement to the series as it features character progression. There are optional abilities that players can pick up that will change how they deal with puzzles. This will allow the players some creativity in solving them, making it one of the best recent puzzle games.
4) Baba is You
With a retro art style and unique gameplay mechanics, Baba is You is just incredible. Players decide how the environment will interact with other things in it to progress. The game looks simple, but it’s so far from that.
Baba is You is a game that allows players to consider creativity, think outside of the box, and really take their puzzle-solving skills to the next level. Each level has a series of objects, movable word tiles and characters, and the player will have control over it.
It feels like programming, in addition to puzzle solving. There are over 200 levels, and each one is a new challenge.
3) We Were Here Together
We Were Here Together brings horror and creepiness back to puzzle games. A co-op title, We Were Here Together has a charming art style, where two people are in the Antarctic to help a colleague. It’s a thriller and demands teamwork to overcome the various obstacles and puzzles.
Only being able to speak to each other while using the walkie-talkie is also a clever aspect, and has made for some genuinely funny moments when people stream the game together. This game is a real test of friendship, in the best way.
2) Untitled Goose Game
Untitled Goose Game is such a treasure in the puzzle genre. Instead of being a hero that solves disasters, players control a goose that is just wandering around, being the one that causes problems.
It’s a stealth puzzle game, where the goose has to do a variety of things to distract the regular people. The duck can honk, duck, run, flap its wings or steal objects with its beak.
It’s comical, clever, and enjoyable to play. It can also be played in a co-op mode, where two geese work together to frustrate NPCs. Untitled Goose Game presents a pleasant change of pace where the player is the one causing problems on purpose.
1) Portal 2
Portal 2 is, without a doubt, the king of puzzle games. A clever title, it involves the player solving puzzles for GLaDOS again, using the portal gun to traverse areas. By placing portals on walls, floors and ceilings, players can teleport between them to get around, move blocks, and do much more.
It has more features than the previous Portal game as well, adding tractor beams, lasers, light bridges, and other things to make puzzles more interesting. It’s a brain teaser, where players use portals, cubes, and other things to solve puzzles in a creative way.
It’s one of the best puzzle games that make players think about every single step they take. Figuring out the best way to solve a puzzle is what feels so satisfying in this particular title. To top it all off, it has amazing writing, with plenty of amazing and comical moments.
Puzzle games have come in a variety of styles over the years, from titles like Myst to stealth/combat platformers like the original Prince of Persia. No matter the style, it’s always satisfying to overcome the challenges that come with puzzle games.
