In this video from Razbuten (The Games I Wish I Could Play Again For The First Time ), he talks about how a good discovery game is like a good puzzle (Clockwork game philosophy builds infinite fun). There's something truly magical about teasing out the solution to a good mystery.

There is a lot that could be said about this, but I think I mostly want to highlight two things:

1. Discovery games are very much like trying to find a solution to a problem in your own life. The one difference is you know that there will be a solution (Games excel as teaching, not learning mediums), because it's a game.
2. This replayability of games is a newfangled concept with the dawn of consumption of games as linear storytelling (Game loops help players learn). Puzzles are part of the content treadmill, and that's what causes this problem in the first place.

Either way, I think he captures a similar sentiment I have. If the game centers around some form of discovery or exploration, I'm drawn in to solve the overarching puzzle.

#gamedesign #toolong