Plotkin quote re: best puzzles make the player feel smart?

[Zed (Zed Lopez)]

quickly searching here for variations on “player feel smart” turns up…

@VictorGijsbers 2015-03-15

@VictorGijsbers

I like this kind of design, because it makes the player feel smart without increasing the probability that she’ll get stuck.

@HiEv 2021-10-08

@HiEv

This also helps players feel rewarded with a sense of progress towards a goal whenever they make their choices, especially if they can see visible indicator of that progress (skill bars go up, inventory slots filled, etc.).

@DeusIrae 2022-05-01

@DeusIrae

While I did get stuck on that last puzzle, which I think did need better signposting, for the most part the game really nails the balance between being easy enough to allow for quick progress, but tricky enough that the player feels clever for figuring out what to do next.

@mathbrush 2023-02-10

@mathbrush

For my thought though, great games aren’t great because they are hard, but because they make players feel smart or accomplished.

@BogusMeatFactory 2023-04-12

@BogusMeatFactory

We can make hints be more enjoyable and actually fun to utilize in a way that makes the player feel smart without shaming them.

@DeusIrae 2023-10-19

@DeusIrae

Turning to the gameplay, the various puzzles are all logical, and build on each other in a way that makes the player feel clever

@mathbrush 2023-10-20

@mathbrush

Currently, my plan in the ‘main’ ending is to reuse puzzles from each of the earlier areas, but now unified with one theme. At best, that should hopefully give it a feeling of ‘everything you learned has brought you to this moment’ and should also make the endgame a lot easier while still helping the player feel smart (since they learned how to do this stuff).

@AvB 2024-05-15

@AvB

As AmandaB has pointed out above, the current trend is towards more accessible gameplay in parser games. Maybe not “click to continue”, but ideally still “works on first try”. This makes the player feel clever. And we all like to feel clever.

A couple of 'em aren’t quite about puzzle design per se but I thought I’d include them anyway.