Scott Kim - Puzzle Makers Survival Kit

Two things a puzzle needs to be:
1.Fun (a very dangerous word)
2.Solvable

Motivations for taking part in puzzles:

• Challenge 
• Distraction
• As we read on we see that the motivations for puzzles are extremely similar to the motivations to play games.

Puzzle Divisions and Brief explanations of each:

Action Puzzles-

Puzzles with a mental challenge combined with a twitch skill, i.e. Tetris

Error recovery.

Easy to learn.

Story Puzzle- 

Use the puzzle to tell a story - about the line between story and puzzle and the link you make.

Keep the story relevant

Certain genres that are more readily adaptable to Story Puzzles

Competitive Puzzles - 

Games where the players use the same area or puzzle and all attempt to complete the puzzle as quick as possible and beet the opponent.

Key is to be quick and is usually turn based games

Should be simple and quick i.e. Peggle

Construction Puzzles - 

E.G. Lego

Modularity - Meaning giving the player choices, for example in Lego you can build whatever you want due to the fact the pieces will fit together in any combination, if the player can only attach certain pieces then the players options are limited and we are restricting the player as a games designer.

Too little or Too much structure

Intensity Ramping in Puzzles:

Different Mechanics - Accelerating Puzzles - based on Twitch

Increasing difficulty through stage or levels - based on Twitch

Increasing difficulty then a new mechanic is added i.e. an upgrade then start from the same difficulty and work up to the next upgrade - difficulty range between levels doesn't greatly increase

Semi-Linear ordering - trying to offer the player complete choice with no set order only the end level or point - difficulty range between levels doesn't greatly increase

Ordered - you must complete one task to move onto the next and so on

Meta Puzzle - smaller puzzles give you a clue to solve the bigger puzzle, gives the player the sense of progression

How Should You Start?:

Enjoying the manipulation of  The Puzzle

Start them with the familiar - Introduce player to objects they can manipulate but do not alter the puzzle state

Specifying rules:

Making it clear what the player can or can not do in the game.

Building up Puzzles:

Make sense in the ordering of the difficulty of puzzles. Don't give the player a really difficult puzzle at the start because they wont do it then your game will fail.

Simplifying:

Example of simplifying - Making a puzzle about cars in a car parking space and you have to simplify the puzzle into its core component of the puzzle, getting the car and getting it out of the car park.

Editor:

Means you can quickly build and tweak a puzzle to test the puzzle components.

Level Design:

Start with a bang 

Teach techniques

Paint a picture 

Develop a theme