Puzzle – Page 2 – Stately Play

I got to play Luca Redwood’s Photographs and it’s fantastic

February 20, 2018 David Neumann 2

iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • With 1000000 and You Must Build a Boat under his belt, Luca Redwood has become a legend around these parts. Both of those titles looked and played very simply, but had a hidden depth that you realized only once you rolled up your sleeves and delved in. Luca’s next game is called Photographs and, until now, we didn’t know much about it. That changed this morning when I was sent a preview copy that I’ve been messing around with all day. I’m pretty sure that Luca Redwood fans won’t be disappointed when Photographs hits the App Store.

My Factorio addiction is becoming worrisome

February 13, 2018 David Neumann 1

PC/Mac/Linux • According to Steam, over the past week I’ve played Factorio for 31 hours. That may not seem like a lot to gaming diehards, but we’re talking about a guy with three kids who is forced to spend most of his waking hours away from a keyboard. 31 hours in a week on my laptop, playing games, is simply unheard of. Even games like Civ or Cities: Skylines haven’t drawn that kind of devotion from me in the past few years. In fact, I’d have to go back to pre-kid days when I’d spend every night playing World of Warcraft while my wife travelled for her job. Yes, I was a really cool cat back then, too. The thing with Factorio is that I haven’t even scratched the surface. I suddenly understand why my kids like Minecraft so much.

Review: The Room-Old Sins

January 25, 2018 David Neumann 1

iOS Universal • The Room: Old Sins is the fourth title in the vaunted The Room series of puzzle games, the first of which came out way back when the iPad 3 and iPhone 4S were the pinnacles of mobile gaming. The first game was a revelation, mixing cutting edge and realistic graphics with a tactile feel that you could only get from a touchscreen. The next two games in the series offered more of the same touchy-feely puzzles while expanding the size and scope of the world in which the puzzles existed. The Room: Old Sins doesn’t do anything new to change the well worn formula, feeling much like every other game in the series. Luckily, that’s exactly what we were hoping for.

Gorogoa is so beautiful it almost stopped me from throwing my iPad across the room

December 15, 2017 David Neumann 7

iOS Universal, PC, Switch • Every now and then you’ll see a screenshot for a game and realize you need to buy it even without knowing what the hell the game is about. I do this with board games all the time, and have shelves of games with gorgeous art that I never play because they’re dull as sin or just not something I could ever introduce to my game group. Gorogoa was released earlier this week and the screenshots are incredible–even the icon is cool as hell–so I immediately jumped on it. Would Gorogoa sit on a virtual shelf, unplayed, or would the gameplay match the visuals?

Luca Redwood is back with Photographs, coming in 2018

December 15, 2017 David Neumann 1

iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux • There are mornings when I wake up and read press releases and really wish Owen were around. Today is one of those days. There weren’t too many developers that Owen appreciated more than Luca Redwood, whose 1000000 and You Must Build A Boat were always on his top whatever lists. Luca has a new game in the works, Photographs, and it’s unlike anything else he’s done. Maybe unlike anything anyone has done. I know I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

3D platformer, Fez, makes its way to mobile

December 13, 2017 David Neumann 7

iOS Universal, PC/Mac/Linux • Fez looks like one of those games 12-year old me would have loved but old, decrepit me should detest. Like all platformers, it looks as though it requires at least a modicum of dexterity, something I haven’t been in possession of since I was 24. Still, like Braid or Super Meat Boy, it’s one of those indie platformers you hear about even if you’re not a fan of the genre. Today Fez made its way to the App Store so I gave it a go. Lo and behold, I’m not as worthless as I thought I’d be.

Someone help me, Zachtronics has done it again

December 5, 2017 David Neumann 5

PC/Mac/Linux • There are few games that take over my complete existence for periods of time, where nothing else in the world matters other than taking another turn. The Civilization games will do this, as will most city-builders. Another group of games that I tend to lose myself in for days or weeks at a time come from a small indie developer, Zachtronics. I instantly fell in love with them after my first foray into SpaceChem, and have loved just about everything else they’ve ever conjured up. Their latest is in Early Access on Steam right now and it’s just as good as anything they’ve ever made. If you’re looking for a puzzler that requires actual brain power, logic, and a dose of coding, look no further than Opus Magnum.

Text adventure Subsurface Circular finds its way to iPad

October 23, 2017 David Neumann 2

iPad, PC/Mac • Hey, everyone! It’s Monday and I’m still sick! This announcement has nothing to do with the game we’re about to discuss or with garnering sympathy (I’ll take it, but that’s not the main point), but I wanted everyone to understand why content might be a little slow over the next few days. The flu I seem to have picked up is accompanied by migraine level headaches, and staring at a screen makes it about 100x worse, which is kind of an issue when writing a blog. Hopefully this clears up quickly and things can get back to normal, but I thought you should know. Back to our regular programming: Let’s talk about Subsurface Circular.

Returner 77 lands on the App Store

October 18, 2017 David Neumann 5

iOS Universal • Need to kill about 12 hours while you wait for a certain something to arrive on the App Store? I feel ya. You could fill a bit of that time with Underhand, but if you’re in more of a puzzle mood, how’s about giving Returner 77 a go?

The Witness puzzles its way onto the App Store

September 21, 2017 David Neumann 6

iOS Universal, PC/Mac • It’s been a long time since we’ve had a pure puzzle game worth talking about land on the App Store. The Witness, Jonathan Blow‘s puzzle opus, almost fits. It’s definitely a puzzle game, but it’s also big, beautiful, and mysterious. It feels like there’s much more to do than just solving the maze-like puzzles, but when you get down to it, there really isn’t. It’s kind of weird, but I keep loading it up and exploring the world so there must be something there.