The most interesting puzzle games released in 2017
All the best and most popular games of the year, upcoming releases, and hits from the past. Use filters to narrow down search.
Bubble Witch 3 Saga
Puzzle
January 11, 2017
A simple arcade game by King. Unlike its predecessors, the game can be played not only in browser, but also on Facebook and mobile devices. The story once again focuses on Stella the witch, whose task is to defend a magical world from the evil cat called Wilbur. The antagonist kidnaps the Fairy Queen and imprisons good ghosts and friendly owls. The gameplay in Bubble Witch 3 Saga still focuses on shooting colorful bubbles at the ones hanging in the upper part of the board. You have to match bubbles of the same color together — by matching at least three of them, you gain points and bonuses. In the story campaign, your task is to defeat the magical barrier created by Wilbur. Other game modes include the multiplayer mode and the collecting mode, in which you play until you clear the whole board. There is also an option to expand the witch's house, full of various gadgets. The game features pleasant cartoonish 2D visuals.
She Remembered Caterpillars
Puzzle
January 17, 2017
She Remembered Caterpillars is a isometric 2D puzzle game developed by Ysbryd Games. She Remembered Caterpillars takes us to a weird world where we have to find our missing father. A bigger emphasis, however, is put on the gameplay mechanics (manipulating the colors), not the plot. During the game we will control colorful creatures that move around small maps and can only cross bridges that are of the same color as them. The fact that our colorful monsters can fuse themselves and create a monster in another color, like purple, will make achieving victory much simpler. With that fusion, the created monster can cross bridges of both colors that created him. On every level from the forty available, we have to make sure all of our creatures crossed the bridges and end up on special white tiles.
Red's Kingdom
Puzzle
January 19, 2017
A puzzle game in which we play as the titular squirrel. To save our hero's kidnapped father and recover the stolen Golden Nut, the main character must defeat Mad King Mac. While playing Red's Kingdom we will have to solve puzzles and eliminates enemies, while also gaining new skills.
Potion Explosion
Puzzle
January 25, 2017
A match-3 logic puzzle game and an adaptation of a board game of the same name. The production was developed by Clangore. The game takes place in the Horribilorum Sorcery Academy, and your task is to brew increasingly complicated potions. To succeed, you have to follow the instructions and choose the right ingredients. When you clear one of them, just like in any other match-3 game, the ones above them fall down, often diametrically changing the whole board. If two components of the same kind touch, they explode. Another obstacle is the limited capacity of the ingredients container. Potion Explosion features a single player mode, in which you play against the AI, and a multiplayer mode, in which you compete with other players. There is also an online ranking to display you accomplishments.
Adventure Pop
Puzzle
January 31, 2017
A tile-matching game distributed in a free-to-play model. Adventure Pop sees us assume control over Penelope – an adventure seeker that has to face a group of airborne pirates in her search for her missing friends. The game takes place on a two-dimensional field filled with colored marbles. Our job is to clear the area by firing projectiles of a matching color. A successful match clears a set of identical marbles, resulting in additional bonuses. The single player mode pits us against opponents who are given the same task, forcing us to clear our field before our enemy manages to do it. Each level is filled with useful power-ups, while rescued friends and some of the defeated opponents join our team, offering additional abilities and special powers.
We Were Here
Puzzle
February 3, 2017
An unusual, first-person perspective logic game developed by Total Mayhem Games. The title is a game focused on cooperation mode. We Were Here takes place in a mysterious, abandoned castle in the middle of nowhere. One of the players assumes the role of a man imprisoned in a small part of the fortress. The second player has access to a much greater area and is tasked with finding and freeing his companion. To achieve that, the players must complete a series of logic and environmental puzzles based on team work. What makes matter worse is the fact that the characters can communicate only by using a radio. In addition to that, in some parts of the castle there are harsh conditions and the player can, for example, freeze to death. We Were Here can be played only in cooperation mode via Internet and with microphone. The title also supports virtual reality goggles, although they aren’t mandatory to play the game.
Hidden Folks
Puzzle
February 15, 2017
Hidden Folks is an original puzzle game created by Adriaan de Jongh and Sylvain Tegroeg. Gameplay is based on a simple, although a rather unusual scheme. The game takes place on a dozen or so 2D, monochromatic boards where we have to find all of the targets, which can be characters or specific items. Our search for them is hampered by the necessity to use the game's environment to find some of them (i.e. to find a music fan we will have to turn on the nearby speakers), and the fact that each and every level is filled with objects that will divert our attention. The game offers some clues and a list of items we have to find if we get way above our heads. The visuals and audio definitely make Hidden Folks stand out among other similar games. The game looks as if it was hand drawn by a bored student during a lecture, and almost every element of the game's environment (humans, cars, animals, even robots) have their own unique sounds.
Snipperclips: Cut It out, Together
Puzzle
March 3, 2017
Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together is an original puzzle game developed by SFB Games and published by Nintendo for their Nintendo Switch console. Various riddles that require not only creative thinking, but also good reflexes and strict player cooperation are the core elements of gameplay. In Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together we play as paper characters whose shape we can change so that they complement the shapes of characters created by other players, leading to the puzzle being solved. The riddles are divided into two groups: for beginners and for advanced players. Along with the co-op mode for up to four players, the game offers game modes focused on competition. Snipperclips: Cut It Out, Together features colorful 2D visuals.
Super Blackjack Battle II Turbo Edition
Puzzle
March 3, 2017
Super Blackjack Battle II Turbo Edition is a production that allows you to compete for the title of the best Blackjack specialist in history. Created by Stage Clear Studios, the game has a title and certain flavors, such as the styling of the characters, alluding to Capcom's famous Super Street Fighter II Turbo fight.
The Elder Scrolls: Legends
Puzzle
March 9, 2017
A strategy card game set in the universe of a well-known RPG series that has been developed since 1994 by Bethesda Softworks. In terms of game mechanics, The Elder Scrolls: Legends takes after the competing Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, and the gameplay comes down to dueling with a self-built deck of cards representing heroes, equipment, spells, skills etc. The game combines storytelling elements and characters known from previous installment of the series, such as the legendary Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim, as well as The Elders Scrolls Online.
Euclidean Lands
Puzzle
March 10, 2017
An outstanding puzzle game (better known under the name of notSureAboutNameYet), created by independent developer Miro Straka. The title of Euclidean Lands refers to the mathematical term of Euclidean space, and we play as a wanderer traversing surrealistic lands made of cubic blocks. During his journey, the protagonist faces various puzzles, most of which come down to correct environment manipulation. We can freely rotate not only whole levels, but also single blocks – like in the Rubik's cube. This allows us to bypass traps, while learning the story, fragments of which have been written in seemingly invisible spots throughout the levels. Aside from that, the game also features turn-based fights with enemies, similar to what we have seen in Lara Croft GO.
Death Squared
Puzzle
March 14, 2017
An online logic game focusing on tight cooperation between the participants, created by the Australian SMG Studio. The players assume the roles of sympathetic, cubic robots whose goal is to reach the platforms bearing the same color as their body. The task is not easy however, as different mechanisms and traps were placed in the levels, such as laser sensors (once activated, shuffle the conditions of the map), or energy beams that can be blocked by the robot bearing the same color, but constitute a deadly threat to others. Since the movements of the robots are usually interconnected, solving the puzzles requires strict cooperation and being able to coordinate the moves of particular robots. Death Squared offers over 100 different levels divided into three game modes, namely the story campaign (for one or two players), the PARTY mode (for two or four players), and the special Vault mode, which is also designed for a two- or four-player experience, and features levels rated by the developers as too difficult to be included in the two modes mentioned above.
Card Thief
Puzzle
March 19, 2017
Card Thief is an original mixture of card and stealth games developed by Tinytouchtales. We play as an experienced thief who has four heists to do. The contents of particular heists is randomly generated so that we can replay them many times. During our missions we will have to hide in the shadows, put off torches, avoid being detected, and steal valuable items. Our actions, events, characters, and items are presented like in a card game. Each level is accompanied by a deck of ten cards randomly assigned from a set created by the developers. Our job is to use them to create a path for our thief that will lead him safely to our mission objective. Cards activated by the player also influence the game. They represent our equipment and skills, and we use them to change the situation during a given mission. The game also has a Light System that decides if our character should be detected, and character progression mechanics. The game's eye-pleasing 2D visuals were designed by Max Fiedler. Soundtrack was composed by Oliver Salkic.
Hearthstone: Journey to Un'Goro
Puzzle
April 6, 2017
Another official expansion to the free-to-play card game Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft by Blizzard Entertainment. This time the developers send us to the unexplored forest of the Un’Goro crater, which is inhabited by intriguing, but also very dangerous species of fauna and flora. We follow the team of explorers led by Elise Starseeker, encountering mighty dinosaurs, wild elementals, carnivorous plants and many other interesting organisms. Add-on introduced 135 new cards, a new keyword (skill) called Adapt, and a new card type (Task), as well as a board with an Un’Goro crater theme and a card back fossil. Developers also implemented another group of minions, consisting of Elementals. It consists not only of magical creatures from this expansion, but also some older cards.
World of Tanks Generals
Puzzle
April 15, 2017
A mobile and browser spin-off of the highly popular MMO game - World of Tanks, the game combining strategy and card game. In this game from Wargaming.net studio, players’ main task is to destroy enemy headquarter using their own units, representing one of the four fractions: USA, USRR, France, and Germany. Battles are conducted by playing cards – which symbolize different military formations – from a self made deck, built from a pool of over 200 cards. Each of them has its own strong and weak points, which might be modified during game by developing new technologies and using special cards that can raise their offensive and defensive capabilities. Unlike the original game, World of Tanks Generals lets the players commands not only titular tanks, but also other types of units known from battlefields of World War II.
Odyssey: The Next Generation Science Game
Puzzle
April 19, 2017
Developed by a small independent studio The Young Socrates, Odyssey: The Next Generation Science Game is a logic adventure game with many educational values. In the game, the player follows the story of a girl, who along with her father, who is an archeologist, and the rest of the family were imprisoned by pirates on one of the Caribbean islands. In order to face them, the heroes decided to build obstacles on the island to stop the pirates – these obstacles, however, could not interfere with the rescue mission launched by young scientists. The player assumes the role of a daredevil, who, after hearing a radio transmission broadcasted by Kai, decides to stage a rescue operation for the stranded family. The players observe the action from the first-person perspective, and the gameplay builds on exploration and puzzle solving. During the game, one might not only prove their basic knowledge of physics, mathematics, and astronomy, but also familiarity with over two thousand years of history of these fields of study. The entire experience is enriched with an original hint system that allows the players to learn along with the main protagonist.
Statik
Puzzle
April 27, 2017
Developed by Tarsier Studios, Statik is a logic puzzle game, which utilizes functionalities offered by PlayStation VR. The game takes players to a mysterious laboratory in which scientists conduct secret experiments to discover the full potential of the human brain. The story begins when the main protagonist wakes up in a hospital bed with his hands trapped in a small device; without seeing his fingers, one cannot say what is inside the electronic box, which perfectly represents how the player feels – with the PlayStation VR headgear on, he cannot see his hands either. All the puzzles in the game build on an interesting mechanic – since a puzzle solution is a mystery, no one knows which button on the controller to press at a given moment. These puzzles are based on player’s intuition and perceptivity, as well as the ability to manipulate the elements of the environment. The pattern of subsequent solutions reflects the process of the player familiarizing themselves with the construction of subsequent devices, which changes with each new puzzle. In the game, the player is accompanied by a doctor, who follows our actions and comments on them, often in a humorous way.
Star Wars: Puzzle Droids
Puzzle
April 27, 2017
A logic match-3 game set in the Star Wars universe. The production was developed by Disney and is distributed in the free-to-play business model. The gameplay is based on the characteristic solutions of the genre – on two-dimensional boards covered with square fields where various symbols appear at random. The player’s task is to create chains of at least three elements of the same type – the more made at the same time, the bigger the reward. Compared to other games of the genre, Star Wars: Puzzle Droids distinguishes itself with its extensive scenario – we can experience the story told in the Star Wars: The Force Awakens movie, although the plot – contrary to the movie original – is presented from the perspective of the BB-8 droid. Moreover, the title is more varied than typical match-3 productions. While playing, we unlock various missions and fight enemies. Also, we have a number of special powers at our disposal, which let us deal with increasingly difficult challenges. As we progress, we gain access to the droid’s memories which present interesting scenes from its life.
GNOG
Puzzle
May 2, 2017
A funny puzzle game that allows you to solve riddles resembling three-dimensional puzzles, stylized on the colored heads of monsters. Production uses virtual or augmented reality technologies. It was created by an independent studio KO_OP and released by Double Fine Presents.
Monument Valley 2
Puzzle
May 30, 2017
The second entry in the popular series of puzzle games developed by an independent studio ustwo. The title features a completely new plot, in which the player learns about the fate of a mother who travels with her child through a fantasy world. The gameplay mechanics are based on the ones employed in the first entry in the series – the player is tasked with guiding both characters from one place to another, frequently by manipulating the environment, playing with perspective or by creating optical illusions. It is worth mentioning that the presence of two characters makes solving riddles in Monument Valley 2 slightly different than previously. Despite that, the users that played the previous game should feel familiar in the new entry. The title features high-quality graphics inspired by the works of M.C. Escher.
Framed 2
Puzzle
June 14, 2017
A prequel to the first Framed, an indie puccle game developed by Australian studio Loveshack Entertainment. The game once again relies on the setting of hardboiled novels, only this time set in Asia, where the protagonist has been framed for a crime he did not commit. He has no choice, but to clear his name before he gets caught by real criminals or the police. Framed 2 employs comics panel-based narrative, constructed in a way that will allow the protagonist to get out of trouble. Finding the correct solution might often be a true challenge – before we get it, we will see a few other versions of the story, each ending tragically for our hero. All of this is presented with interesting, comic book-like visuals inspired by the noir convention.
Chess Ultra
Puzzle
June 21, 2017
An advanced chess simulator adapted to support VR headsets. Chess Ultra allows us to compete against other players or AI that offers ten difficulty levels, which determine how many moves can the computer read in advance and the probability of it making a mistake. The action is observed from the first-person perspective. We can learn both the basics and advanced strategies in the tutorial. In total, the developers prepared eighty chess challenges (e.g. winning a game within seven turns). The multiplayer lets us play locally or engage in ranked online matches. Chess Ultra also allows the players to organize their own tournaments and search for game partners of the same skill level. The developers created four game rooms. Moreover, we can change the appearance of the board and chess figures by choosing from tens of available models. The production supports 4K resolution.
Boost Beast
Puzzle
July 20, 2017
A cartoonish production from the match-3, genre created by Arzest studio and Arc System Works company. Boost Beast takes the player to an alternate reality, in which all humans have changed into blood-thirsty zombies after a mysterious meteor crashed on Earth. Only the animals led by dog Alec are left to resolve that crisis. Gameplay encompasses turn-based battles with undead taking place on more than 200 arenas - two-dimensional battlefields made of square fields filled with colorful elements. Combining at least three fields with the same color will summon one of several animals with different battle skills. The game comes with a variety of enemies, obstacles on the field and a huge number of bonuses that change an arrangement of the elements on the field.
Eden: Renaissance
Puzzle
July 24, 2017
Eden: Renaissance is a puzzle game created by The Last Kind studio. The player control a young archeologist who came across remnants of an alien civilization during his trip to Antarctica. Along with one of their representatives, the titular Eden, we have to save the world and find a way back home. The game uses turn-based mechanics and we have to safely lead our characters from the starting point to the finish line. We can find many obstacles and dangers on our way which means that we have to come up with ways to deal with them. We need to plan our paths, use environment and Eden's special abilities that allows him to control the elements. We also, from time to time, can come across enemies and each of their types requires a different tactic in order to defeat them. The game also has fights with powerful bosses. All of this is presented in good 3D graphics and a cartoonish style. The campaign features half an hour of cut-scenes.
Puzzle Adventure Blockle
Puzzle
August 3, 2017
A funny logic game, in which the gameplay is based on rotating entire levels. By doing that we help the hero to reach the exit, collect various items and avoid dangers. Puzzle Adventure Blockle has two main characters – a cat called Kulu, who was sent by Katz city mayor to find seven stones that can help him to take over the world, and beautiful goddess, Arkia, who can manipulate levels. She agreed to use her powers because she has problems with her memory and she was promised that she can return to her world if she completes the mission. The game was developed by a Japanese studio called Intense who can be known for its action game Dot Runner: Complete Edition. Puzzle Adventure Blockle graphics are made in 2D, employing a funny manga-like visual style. The game, available on Nintendo Switch, can be acquired for a small price but was released only in digital distribution.
Swim Out
Puzzle
August 8, 2017
A puzzle game in which we play the role of a swimmer trying to get from one end of the pool to the other. Completion of the task is complicated by the fact that our client cannot cross the road for the rest of the people taking the bath. More than a hundred levels await completion in Swim Out, and the game resembles a chess game - the title forces us to plan our next moves in advance.
Hearthstone: Knights of the Frozen Throne
Puzzle
August 10, 2017
Hearthstone: Knights of the Frozen Throne is the sixth expansion for the free-to-play card game Hearthstone. It was developed by Blizzard Entertainment and can be bought through the game’s store for either real or in-game currency. This expansion focuses on Lich King’s army and his kingdom of Northrend. Just like the Whispers of the Old Gods DLC, Knights of the Frozen Throne tells an alternate version of the well-known events. This time we will see what would have happened if the greatest heroes of Azeroth (Jauna Proudmoore, Rexxar, and others) became Death Knights, the undead servants of the Lich King. Knights of the Frozen Throne continues Blizzard’s policy of not releasing small Adventure DLCs and focusing on bigger ones. We get a set of 135 cards inspired by the Lich King’s army and the theme of death, including nine cards of a completely new type – Hero Cards. After using them, our hero changes into a Death Knight, gets a new portrait, war cry, ability, and a few points of armor which allows us to change our play style. We can test the new cards in PvP matches or in the single player campaign, during which we will be able to face the Lich King himself. The expansion also introduces a new battlefield and card backs.
Top Gear: Road Trip
Puzzle
August 17, 2017
A mobile logic game developed by the Finnish developer Motorious Entertainment. As the title suggests, the game is based on the popular TV show – Top Gear, aired by BBC Britain. In Top Gear: Road Trip, the player gets to travel across Great Britain, France, Italy, and other regions of Europe. During the game, one not only visits the aforementioned territories but also participates in multiple races, acquires new cars, and completes tasks based on the challenges from the TV show. When playing the game, the player has access to two separate parts of the screen – on the first one, they observe the action from the inside of a car, which allows them to control the situation on the track and quickly react to anything that might happen (the driving mechanics are typical for match-3 games). The bottom part of the screen is populated with colorful symbols, which the players have to manipulate in order to create combinations of 3 pieces in the same color. Such sequences influence the movement of the driven car. What is worth mentioning, particular tracks can be completed multiple times in order to beat one’s best scores, as well as those set by players from all around the world.
Archaica: The Path of Light
Puzzle
September 8, 2017
A logic game inspired by Chromatron and Aargon. Archaica: The Path Of Light is the debut production of TwoMammoths, a Polish development studio. The title puts an incredibly responsible task in the player’s hands: to save the humanity from extinction. To achieve this, we have to activate special defense mechanisms by leading a beam of light through the forgotten path of the ancients. In practice, it means operating mirrors so that they reflect light into magic crystals that provide energy to machines. This task is made difficult by numerous obstacles such as stone blocks that we have to move or gates that need to be opened. The game is further enriched with secrets that reveal some details about the story. We uncover them by directing a beam of light at obelisks marked with hieroglyphs. The single player campaign offers five areas divided into several levels. We gain access to them from the world map, and the stages we’ve completed can be replayed. Archaica: The Path Of Light features colorful 3D graphics and diverse locations.