Best Video Games for puzzle design

puzzle design Decision Dashboard

Best for puzzle design

Pragmata

4.8 feature score

Highest scored product for this feature based on supporting review evidence.

Safest pick

Split Fiction

4.8 feature score

Balances feature score, supporting reviews, and overall product strength.

Most evidence

Silent Hill f

26 supporting reviews

Has the broadest review evidence for this feature.

Best overall product

Donkey Kong Bananza

4.4 overall score

Strongest overall product among items with scored evidence for this feature.

See ranked products
#1 Pragmata
4.8
3 reviews

Puzzle design is praised for turning hacking grids into a real-time combat puzzle that feels fresh rather than a throwaway minigame.

Pros: bug frequency, user interface design

Cons: HUD clarity, mission design

#2 Split Fiction
4.8
7 reviews

Puzzle design was consistently praised for co-op dependence, teamwork, and creativity, with only occasional simplicity noted.

Pros: puzzle design, level design

Cons: exploration quality, side character depth

#3 Goodnight Universe
4.5
1 review

Puzzle design received praise in limited evidence, especially for a psychic-camera sequence that felt fun and surprisingly challenging.

Pros: side character depth, visual effects quality

Cons: user interface design, handheld play suitability

#4 Hollow Knight: Silksong
4.5
1 review

Puzzle design receives limited but positive evidence, with one review saying Silksong makes puzzle-solving and hidden-path discovery feel effortless.

Pros: core gameplay loop, world interactivity

Cons: loot system, accessibility options

#5 Donkey Kong Bananza
4.3
9 reviews

Puzzle design was often praised for clever material interactions and challenge rooms, but several reviewers felt some puzzles were too easy, bypassable, or constrained.

Pros: gameplay mechanics, world interactivity

Cons: economy and resource balance, enemy variety

#6 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
4.2
1 review

One review praised each section as a puzzle-like stealth space where guards, terrain, and limited gear create solvable challenges.

Pros: world interactivity, sandbox freedom

Cons: crash stability, learning curve

#7 Silent Hill f
4.2
26 reviews

Puzzle design was broadly a strength, with many reviewers praising clever, thematic, challenging puzzles, though some found certain clues obtuse, culturally unclear, or overlong.

Pros: voice acting, emotional impact

Cons: family friendliness, menu usability

#8 Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss
4.0
23 reviews

Puzzle reactions were the core split: many reviewers loved the demanding detective structure, while others found solutions obtuse, fiddly, or punishingly unclear.

Pros: world-building, world interactivity

Cons: enemy variety, stealth mechanics

#9 007 First Light
4.0
1 review

Puzzle-like infiltration earns limited but positive support, with one reviewer calling the layered entry method convoluted yet only one of several possible solutions.

Pros: level design, user interface design

Cons: AI behavior, facial animations

#10 Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
4.0
1 review

Puzzle design receives a mild positive note for being logical and not slowing the action down.

Pros: graphics quality, environmental detail

Cons: bug frequency, dialogue quality

#11 Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
3.9
4 reviews

Puzzles were generally satisfying and boss-like, though psychic mechanics were sometimes called familiar or clunky.

Pros: world-building, frame rate stability

Cons: companion AI, upgrade system

#12 Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight
3.7
3 reviews

Puzzle evidence is mixed: one reviewer found puzzles too simple, while others praised gadget use and puzzle variety within missions.

Pros: pacing, core gameplay loop

Cons: companion AI, map and navigation design

#13 Lego Voyagers
3.6
21 reviews

Puzzle design drew the widest split: many praised cooperative, elegant, rewarding ideas, while others found bridge-building repetitive or underwhelming.

Pros: writing quality, checkpoint system

Cons: menu usability, user interface design

#14 Doom: The Dark Ages
3.5
2 reviews

Puzzle design was lightly covered, with reviewers describing simple exploration puzzles as enjoyable but rarely demanding.

Pros: environmental detail, polish

Cons: camera behavior, value for money

#15 The Alters
3.5
2 reviews

Puzzle evidence was mixed: environmental puzzles earned praise, but the probe-based resource puzzle was criticized as fiddly and low-value.

Pros: controls responsiveness, onboarding experience

Cons: crash stability, grind level

#16 Arc Raiders
3.5
1 review

The one puzzle-related event mention was positive but limited, describing it as a nice diversion that needs more support.

Pros: frame rate stability, platform-specific feature support

Cons: voice acting, writing quality

#17 Cronos: The New Dawn
3.4
11 reviews

Puzzle design drew mixed responses: several praised time and environmental puzzles as a good break from combat, while others found them simple, padded, or underdeveloped.

Pros: core gameplay loop, emotional impact

Cons: checkpoint system, bug frequency

#18 Crimson Desert
2.9
9 reviews

Reviewer evidence is negative or mixed: puzzle design was often criticized, even where some reviewers found redeeming moments across 9 review(s).

Pros: level design, replay value

Cons: stealth mechanics, save system reliability

#19 Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
2.7
5 reviews

Puzzle design was mixed to negative: a few simple puzzles were praised for the right complexity, but multiple reviews wanted more depth or found specific puzzles clunky.

Pros: character roster, animation quality

Cons: core gameplay loop, polish

#20 South of Midnight
2.1
5 reviews

Puzzle design drew consistent criticism for being too easy, overly guided, or lacking meaningful problem-solving.

Pros: atmosphere, voice acting

Cons: world interactivity, camera behavior

#21 The Last of Us Part II Remastered
2.0
1 review

Puzzle design was a weak point in one review, which complained that environmental puzzles were too few and underdeveloped.

Pros: core gameplay loop, level design

Cons: family friendliness, puzzle design

#22 Ghost of Yōtei
1.5
1 review

Puzzle design receives a low score from a reviewer who calls several puzzles overly simple and almost pointless.

Pros: movement feel, environmental detail

Cons: puzzle design, age appropriateness