Puzzle Games

The life of a spy is often glamorized in media, and particularly in games, but few have ever asked you to solve and survive the treacherous puzzles of a devious foe the same way as I Expect You to Die.

I really wanted The Last Guardian to blow me away. I've always had a soft spot for the underdog, and a game that sat in development limbo for over 10 years certainly fit that status. I hoped this would be a complete and beautiful experience that I’d talk about for years to come. Sadly, the decade-long wait for the third feather in Team Ico’s cap did not meet that standard, as the emotional story was marred by technical issues of a bygone era.

Superhypercube is a terrific puzzle game in and of itself, let alone as a launch title for the PlayStation VR.

The Phoenix Wright games are perhaps the most popular of all visual novel games out there and both Japan and North America received their first taste of the quirky courtroom drama on this day in 2001 and 2005 respectively with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney.

It was today in 1993 that the world took the first adventure to the mysterious titular island.

It was on this day in 2001 that North American gamers were allowed to take the journey that paint one of gaming history’s most perfect examples of games as art.

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice has some bumps along the road, but there's a twisting and thrilling story worth the occasional struggle.

There isn't likely to be a game that captures the majestic beauty of the sea quite as well as Abzu. From the moment Giant Squid's first game debuted a few years ago, we've been in constant awe of the oceanic splendor it presents, and the vibrancy with which it captures the world beneath the waves. Beauty only gets you so far however. As spectacular as Abzu's ocean is, from the hundreds of species of marine life to the impressive seascapes, it ultimately feels a bit shallow.

It was today that this bizarre adventure hit North American shelves and entered our dreams and nightmares with its punishing difficulty and unique take on fast-paced puzzle solving.

Narrative-heavy games always have a particular set of challenges to overcome to bridge a gap that makes them worth a player’s time. The story has to be good enough to carry a lack of actual gameplay elements without overdoing it and collapsing upon itself. Furthermore, the gameplay elements that are present have to be meaningful and interesting enough to maintain engagement without weighing down the story in something too meddlesome or extraneous. For Zero Escape, a series that has previously seemed to delight in the convoluted, balancing story and gameplay has been hit or miss. Thankfully, the third game in the series, Zero Time Dilemma, is adventure full of disturbing and compelling twists and turns with gameplay make it interesting and inviting, even if you haven’t followed the series from the very beginning.