Puzzle games often get overshadowed by flashier genres like FPS or open-world adventures. However, the puzzle genre offers a unique blend of creativity, satisfying mechanics, and often, deep narratives. Far from simple logic or number puzzles, modern puzzle games deliver mind-bending challenges and engaging stories. Whether you’re a seasoned puzzle enthusiast or a newcomer looking to test your cognitive skills, here are some of the best puzzle games available on Xbox Series X.
Donut County: A Whimsical Hole-in-One
Donut County is a charming and casual indie game perfect for a relaxing day of gameplay. You control a hole that swallows objects, growing larger with each item consumed, allowing you to swallow even bigger objects. Think of it as a reverse Katamari Damacy. Each level presents a unique challenge, requiring you to strategically swallow objects in a specific order. You’ll need to manipulate the environment, use catapults, and solve other physics-based puzzles to clear each stage. Donut County is a delightful and clever game that offers a satisfying sense of accomplishment without being overly demanding.
Donut County – PSX 2017: Updog Gameplay Trailer | PS4
The Talos Principle II: Philosophical Puzzles
If you crave a more challenging experience, The Talos Principle II delivers complex puzzles that will put your problem-solving skills to the test. Played from a first-person perspective, you’ll navigate intricate environments, manipulate lasers, place boxes on pressure plates, and control fans to reach your goal: activating a button at the end of each puzzle. Beyond the intricate puzzles, The Talos Principle II boasts a compelling sci-fi narrative about humanity’s creation of AI and the quest for artificial sapience. While the story ties into the first game, it’s not essential to have played it to enjoy this thought-provoking sequel.
The Talos Principle 2 | Release Date Trailer | Available November 2 | PC | PS5 | XSX/S
Botany Manor: Cultivating Calm
Botany Manor offers a grounded and relaxing puzzle experience centered around cultivating plants. This point-and-click adventure tasks you with finding the right conditions to grow a variety of magical plants. Explore the manor, gather clues, and experiment with different methods to nurture your botanical collection. Botany Manor provides a calming and rewarding gameplay loop accessible to players of all skill levels.
Botany Manor – Announcement Trailer – Nintendo Switch
Superliminal: A Mind-Bending Perspective
Superliminal plays with perception and reality, offering a unique puzzle experience based on optical illusions and forced perspectives. You’ll manipulate objects that change size based on your viewpoint. Need to reach a high ledge? Bring a small cube close to your camera to make it appear larger, then place it in the world at its new size to create a stepping stone. While the controls can be slightly finicky, Superliminal offers a memorable and mind-bending experience unlike any other.
SUPERLIMINAL – E3 KF TEASER
Return to Monkey Island: A Hilarious Adventure
Return to Monkey Island is a point-and-click adventure game packed with puzzles, charming characters, and witty humor. Explore vibrant environments, converse with quirky islanders, and discover creative uses for everyday objects to solve puzzles. While familiarity with previous Monkey Island games enhances the experience, newcomers can jump in and enjoy the standalone story.
Return to Monkey Island | Coming 2022
Braid: Anniversary Edition: A Timeless Classic
Braid is a seminal indie title that helped popularize time-manipulation mechanics in puzzle games. The Anniversary Edition features updated graphics, improved animations, 40 new levels, and developer commentary, adding even more depth to this timeless classic. Whether you’re revisiting Braid or experiencing it for the first time, its clever puzzles and thought-provoking narrative remain captivating.
Announcement
Return of the Obra Dinn: A Nautical Mystery
Return of the Obra Dinn puts you in the shoes of an insurance investigator tasked with uncovering the fate of a ghost ship’s crew. Explore the ship frozen in time, piece together clues, and determine each crew member’s identity, cause of death, and killer. With 60 crew members to investigate, the mystery is complex and interwoven, but the satisfaction of unraveling the truth is immensely rewarding.
Return of the Obra Dinn – Available Now
These are just a few of the excellent puzzle games available on Xbox Series X. Whether you prefer casual or challenging, whimsical or grounded, there’s a puzzle game out there waiting to engage your mind and spark your creativity.
