A confession: I _hate_ puzzles in a #ttrpg context. I dislike anything where the players are supposed to come up with the "one true answer" instead of creatively engaging with the environment they find themselves in.
If I ever do a "puzzle dungeon", it will have been defaced by many generations of previous adventurers who left no doubt about what they thought of these puzzles.
@juergen_hubert yep.
They rely too much on player abilities rather than player character abilities.
And I just hate puzzles. Too many years of maths and computers mean puzzle solving is my job not a fun hobby.
Agreed. This is a pet peeve of mine as well.
@juergen_hubert
I also hate that in King's Quest series, Myst, Zork etc. If there are "puzzles" let them be at least part of the story rather than arbitrary obstacles. Of course some people just like the puzzles and not fussed on the story or the world or characters. I don't like crossword solving or puzzle books either. No story.
@juergen_hubert Not to mention the solutions are usually way more obtuse than the game designer thinks. Unless you can put yourself into the exact mindset of that particular writer, the solutions often seem very arbitrary or nonsensical.
@juergen_hubert My take on puzzles is:
1) the puzzle should allow players to make guesses and try solutions. Like a machine with a series of levers, and the correct sequence opens a door or something. In one game I played in, we had to move the hands on a clock into the correct position based on a riddle. While we were able to get some progress from the riddle, the final position came when we decided to move the hands and see what worked.
@juergen_hubert 2) The puzzle should be avoidable. If there's only one path and the puzzle is necessary for progress, that's a problem. If there are multiple paths and the puzzle blocks one of them, that's fine. Players can do other things as the puzzle lingers in the background and maybe they'll come up with another solution to try a while later, or it may wind up being completely forgotten, which is also fine.
@juergen_hubert When my character came across a puzzle that the DM meticulously prepared, I asked if they could make an INT check to solve it.
I don’t see why combat can be resolved without pulling real life weapons out, yet puzzles require player resolution.
Like everything else, I think puzzles are a tool used based on player interest. Personally, I love puzzles. I tend to play characters that would shine in those sort of challenges.
But, when I start a campaign as a DM, I specifically ask for player interest in things like puzzles first. My current campaign had a lot of interest in puzzles. So, I've included a couple to give those players that enjoy them a moment. I also try to make them flexible with 2 or 3 ways to solve them.