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Puzzle games can still be incredibly popular and compete with some of the biggest games on the market in terms of player numbers. Lots of people saw what happened with Wordle – a simple concept for a puzzle game quickly became absolutely huge and people all over the world were trying to figure out this simple word game.
Triple-A gaming titles may continually be improving graphics and other aspects of gameplay (some even use AI in them now) but the simple puzzles are often the thing human brains are drawn to. What is it about these puzzle games that keep everybody coming back or looking for new ways to play?
The Mental Challenge
At the core of puzzle games lies their ability to stimulate the brain and its functions. Puzzle games have strategic components or may test memory, logic, and even language or numerical abilities.
Games like Tetris became known all around the world in the early and blocky days of digital gaming – it would challenge players to quickly analyze space and patterns to keep the board clear. They sharpen hand-eye coordination while simultaneously forcing the brain to make split-second decisions about shape rotation and placement.
Puzzle games can be widely compared to table games (some of them even fit both categories) and these are also amazingly popular. People play games like chess – an ancient game with origins long before any of us were born – as it provides a mental challenge. This is one of the most popular table games but there are also examples like blackjack. This is a game with a mental element to it and a level of strategy combined with the random outcome of some events (like which cards are drawn).
These games may be hundreds of years old but they have continued to also become more accessible and now people can play them online. Many online table games can match people with opponents around the world or provide a way to play that is much more straightforward and convenient for those who want to play – this goes some way to explaining the fact they’re still very popular.
We all know that there are different types of entertainment and gaming. Sometimes people may want to play something a bit more random and easy going but there are times when people may want to give their brains a workout with some strategy.
Table games’ appeal partially revolves around a similar principle and the strategic planning involved in each move creates a game that’s equal parts skill and mind power.
Accessibility
We’ve covered the fact that puzzle games may be more simplistic to play online but many of them can also be offline games. We see a lot of connection in dinner party games which can potentially incorporate some of the same elements of puzzle when playing offline – these often have a silly element too.
Many puzzle games offer adjustable difficulty levels which means they can be just as engaging for beginners as they are for experts. Wordle’s massive appeal was partially because people got multiple attempts and the challenge was not just to complete the puzzle but to complete them quickly.
Additionally, these games don’t require expensive equipment or high-tech consoles, making them an affordable and easy-to-access form of entertainment.
Unlike table games which sometimes require a competitive partner or opponent, some puzzle games can be played solo.
Game developers can often create these games quickly. The story of Wordle going stratospheric in popularity after being made by developer Josh Wardle was one example of a game that is actually very simple. The modern method of distributing games can be as simple as just putting them on a website or making them available as an app and this often means developers can churn out a lot of new games if they have ideas.
Wordle was very accessible and people also liked the fact they could get “streaks” for finishing the puzzle each day. The gameplay is really simple and people can get to grips with it in a case of a few minutes meaning no complexity to learn.
The Future of Puzzle Games
The future of puzzle games looks bright, as developers continue to find ways to innovate and keep players engaged. With virtual reality (VR) becoming more mainstream, there’s potential for VR puzzle games to take the genre to new places offering more immersive and hands-on experiences. Games like Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes have already started exploring this space. This is a bomb disposal game allowing players to interact with puzzles in ways that were previously impossible.
Artificial intelligence (AI) could also enhance puzzle games by providing adaptive difficulty levels. This would allow games to adjust in real time based on a player’s performance and ensure that they are always challenged but never overwhelmed.
Gaming fans know that puzzles are just one form of games in an industry growing all the time. The future will be packed with choices!