I don't do puzzles.

[BillyCheers]

I would like to start a topic here that has been "on my mind" for a while (and I hope that it hasn't already been discussed to death ...).

 

First a little outing: I am absolutely no friend of puzzles. Even more: in everyday life I hate puzzles and refuse to think about them. (I'm sure that's partly because I'm not very good at solving them). On the other hand, I love adventure games. I love the good stories, the atmosphere, the characters, etc. And in fact, in adventure games, I even enjoy "solving" the puzzles - if I know the solution. But as soon as I am stuck with a problem for more than a few minutes, I get impatient ( a characteristic of mine in general) and just look it up on the internet. I often do that with a bit of shame, because in the end: That's not what these games are about, right? But that's how I enjoy them the most. And after all, I do enjoy a good puzzle design, even when it was solved for me.

 

I often have the impression that most adventure fans have the ambition to solve the puzzles by themselves (which I find cool and admirable!), but for me it's not like that and I've mostly found peace with my laziness.

 

So, how about you guys?
Are there others here who love adventure games as much, but just can't bring themselves to solve the puzzles by themselves?

[ThunderPeel2001]

I'm all about the puzzles, but if you don't like puzzles and love characters, atmosphere and story, you should check out Unavowed. It's excellent!

 

http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/games/unavowed/

Edited June 2, 2022 by ThunderPeel2001

[BillyCheers]

Thanks for the link, I'll look into it.

 

But don't get me wrong: I don't want to look for easier or puzzle-less games. I am totally fine in having a hard game with lots of puzzles – and looking most of them up. 😁

[Remi]

I'm not much into puzzles myself, though I try not to use walkthroughs. Built-in hint systems, though? That's fair game.

 

Also, I can vouch for Unavowed -- it's very story/atmosphere-forward. Great game. Sounds like a demo for the next game set in the WGU¹ will be released in a couple of weeks.

 

¹⁾ Wadjet Gaming Universe.

[KestrelPi]

Hi!

 

When I first played The Secret of Monkey Island at 10 I had a hint book. It made sense to me in context because I'd never completed a game. Games were hard to finish back then and so it never really even occured to me that I could have a go at it without help. Then when I played MI2 I played easy mode and my first game was easy mode.

 

Later on I developed a taste for puzzles and I do like to try to solve adventures on my own as much as possible now, but I always remembered that playing on easy or with hints didn't make me like the first two games any less, and so however people want to approach games is completely valid.

 

Generally in games I think we as players attach a bit too much value to how we like to experience games when I think that the most sensible thing is to let people enjoy them however they'd like. What works well for me doesn't necessarily for the next person, and I think it's nice that 2 people can play a game in a different way and both get some of the same things and some different things out of it.

 

 

[BillyCheers]

Sure, in the end those games are just made to have fun. But it's ironic that I kind of "dislike" the most central part of an Adventure game (at least from the gameplay point of view).

 

Although I find it totally fascinating to hear people like Ron Gilbert talk about how they design those puzzles and I am sure I'd have a hell lot of fun doing that. Always makes me wonder how much Ron likes to solve puzzles and maybe get stuck for a long time. Because I think making puzzles and solving them are too totally different things.

[BeleG]

Hey, you do you! If that's the way you enjoy playing adventure games, you shouldn't even feel ashamed for playing them with a walkthrough. They're games, all that matters is that you have fun playing them.

 

i for one do not have much fun playing puzzle-less or casual adventure games (like Unavowed), let alone the more narrative-driven games of late Telltale and company. They just don't hold my attention and I don't feel like I'm playing a game, so I easily get bored and move on to something else. I need puzzles to continue to feel engaged and interested in the story, that's what makes these games *games* to me. If I want a more passive narrative experience I switch on the TV, there's a lot of good stuff there!

[BillyCheers]

Makes total sense.

 

Although I think a game played with walkthrough and TV/movies are still pretty different. In adventures you can explore, decide who to talk to (and what). So this interactivity is still there, even if you look up most of the puzzles.

 

But I completely understand your point. And that's what I find so interesting about the topic (and games in general): The reason why you play them can be totally different from person to person – unlike with most of the movies, which you "just watch".

[Vainamoinen]

I think it may all boil down to what we expect from an adventure game. As Telltale's later "adventure" games have shown, it's not just a question of whatever interactivity.

 

What adventure games traditionally did great, besides the puzzles, was the social interaction (conversation trees) and exploration in any given scene (what's this? What does the protagonist think of it?). And some of my favorite adventure games could go on for quite some time with just that, making friends and experiencing new surroundings (like The Longest Journey, especially the Alatien settlement scene).

 

If you fall into the socialite-explorer category of the Adventure Gamer Holy Alignment System Typecasting (AGHAST™), I guess there's absolutely nothing wrong with "I don't do puzzles". 

 

I'm torn though. I love puzzles, but I get easily frustrated nowadays. I love the feeling of accomplishment, but often wish I didn't have to accomplish so damn much before earning that feeling. I don't know. Back when Ron Gilbert made Thimbleweed Park, I think he said something like "I don't want to make an adventure game like it was back in the 80s, I want to make one that feels like it".

 

Maybe he had the right idea back then already.

 

 

[Thrik]

I too can admit this about myself. When I replay Monkey Island, etc the puzzles are so baked into my memory I’m not really solving puzzles at all — I’m just enjoying the atmosphere, characters, locations, story, etc.

 

On the rare occasion I play a truly new adventure games, or at least new to me, I find my patience for tough puzzles is very low. Even with ones I’ve played before but mostly forgotten, like Broken Sword, I find I’m quick to grab the walkthrough.

 

I couldn’t say I enjoy the games any less as a result. They go past more quickly sure, but all I’m missing out on is getting increasingly frustrated as I have to keep making long trips between areas, often to find the answer was something really daft. 😅

[madmardi]

Well, I do like puzzles, but some of the things you mentioned ring true to me as well. I generally try to complete the games without help, but every time I end up breaking down at least once and grab a walkthrough or look something up. Usually I end up feeling a bit guilty afterwards, especially if it was something that was really logical. But like I said, I don't think I've made it through even one game without a little hint. 

 

Now hint systems are interesting. My only experience with them has been TP, and to be honest I ended up using it a few times. Unfortunately once I give in once, I tend to have lower and lower patience and want to keep the story moving. Still felt a feeling of guilt afterwards, but maybe not as much as if I looked it up on the internet.

 

Not that there should be a feeling of guilt. As others have mentioned, I think that as long as you're enjoying the game however you approach it is really just your own taste.

[ThunderPeel2001]

Actually I love hint systems, because then you have a chance to have that "a-ha" moment. Walkthroughs spoil all of that, and often prevent you from having a full experience of the game. (Unless it's my Last Crusade Game Guide, natch).