david perry on game design a brainstorming toolbox

[GameCareerGuide is happy to present its final excerpt from David Perry on Game Design: A Brainstorming Toolbox. This chapter concentrates on the art of puzzles -- one of the most important facets of game design.]

Games and puzzles are often synonymous because puzzles are, in fact, games. They have rules, goals, and often special rewards. However, puzzles are also among the building blocks of good game design, and as such, they are worth exploring in various ways.

What is a Puzzle?

A puzzle is, according to one definition, "a baffling problem that is said to have a correct solution." The key is that it is a problem and that there is a solution. Puzzles can be solved by deduction, by induction, or even by random chance. The solution exists and can be found if the necessary action is completed. Some puzzles can be solved by more than one method. For instance, a Rubik's Cube may have only one solution, but it can be arrived at by different sequences of movements.

It is useful to distinguish puzzles from challenges. Although puzzles represent challenges, some challenges are not puzzles. Some challenges, such as having to fight an enemy who blocks your way, are not really puzzles...unless the enemy has some secret that you must uncover in order to beat him. For instance, the mythological Medusa would turn you to stone, but Perseus used a mirror to turn the tables on her. That was a puzzle... The challenge of finding something to eat when you're hungry is not really a puzzle. You just have to find food and eat it. But the challenge of figuring out which plants are edible and which are poisonous could be a puzzle.

Dilemmas

Some puzzles are pretty straightforward. They have obvious and definite solutions, and from the player's point of view, the solution is all good. But some puzzles involve more complex decision-making, where not all the consequences of solving the puzzle are desirable. I've included a separate discussion of dilemmas in the "Dilemmas" section in Chapter 9, "Storytelling Techniques." The "Dilemmas" section could have been included in this chapter, but I thought it somewhat more relevant in the chapter on stories because it often involves interesting and challenging plot points, which are, at the same time, puzzles.

Puzzles in Games

Puzzles are among the building blocks used to create games. Although the most obvious use of puzzles occurs in puzzle games (of course), adventure games, and Role-Playing Games, in a broad sense puzzles can be thought of as situational challenges. As such, puzzles may occur in many genres of games. For instance, a mission in a First-Person Shooter may involve completing specific steps or destroying a particular installation. To do so, you might have to get past a guard tower or other obstacle, and the way this situation is set up could be thought of as a puzzle.

Putting Pieces Together

One type of puzzle is finding pieces to something and putting them together. This could be a device -- a bomb, an airplane, a shrink ray, a magical suit of armor, for example -- or it could be a potion that involves many ingredients, or a map torn in pieces and scattered. The end result could be useful in itself, or it could be a token that must be delivered to an NPC in order to complete some task.

Missing Persons, Creatures, or Things

Another puzzle could involve finding a missing person/creature/thing.

Persons

They have wandered off and must be located.
They have been kidnapped or otherwise captured by the bad folks.
They are on a quest or task of their own, and you must find them to deliver a message or item or to join forces with them.

Creatures can be key figures in a story, often because they hold the key to a mystery or are really more than they seem. Sometimes, however, creatures are simply beloved pets that have been lost. In this scenario, they are usually part of a minor quest, whereas when they are key elements, they are part of a larger quest or story. They can appear to be the latter while really being the former.

The creature has wandered off and must be located.
The creature has been stolen or otherwise captured by the bad folks.
The creature is actually a sentient being on a quest or task of its own, and you must find it to deliver a message or item or to join forces with it.

Things are often the object of a quest or puzzle. Sometimes they are part of a side quest or a less important story element. Other times, they are crucial to the successful completion of the game.

The object is in pieces and must be reassembled. (Refer to the "Putting Pieces Together" section earlier in this chapter.)

The object is in the hands of the bad guys and must be recovered.
The object is nothing more than a rumor or a myth, but somehow you must find it.
The object is in plain sight, but you can't seem to obtain/move/activate it.
The object is an ordinary item that nobody knows is really the important item. You must discover the truth about it.