5 Great Puzzle Adventure Games

Tengami is an atmospheric adventure game set inside a Japanese pop-up book. Fold and slide the beautifully crafted paper world to solve puzzles and discover secrets. Go on a serene journey through Japan of ancient fairy tales brought to life through striking visuals, unique gameplay and haunting music. Experience dark forests, abandoned shrines, and tranquil mountain waterfalls as you seek to uncover the secret behind the lone dying cherry tree.

This is not a book, but a game inside a pop-up book. Tengami plays like nothing else before it. Reach directly into the world to flip, fold and slide parts of the world to delve deeper into your mysterious journey. Enjoy experiencing the dark forests, abandoned shrines, and tranquil mountain waterfalls while you unravel the secret behind the lone dying cherry tree.

It’s a $4.99 download.

If your pet was kidnapped, what would you do? If you’re Polo in Bring You Home, the answer is to go to ends of the Earth and beyond to get it back.

This game isn’t restricted to the normal confines of a single planet, and instead has portals that let you travel to different dimensions with each one introducing a new challenge for Polo. Each dimension has its own style that ranges from familiar medieval times to outlandish geometric shapes with a nice similarity to the wacky dimensions of Rick & Morty.

Bring You Home comes from the makers of Love You To Bits, and has a similar endearing quality as well as charming art style and level design.

You can download the game for $2.99.

In The Witness, players will find themselves waking up on a remote island, and that’s pretty much it. The island itself is full of puzzles (over 500), and there are many different types of puzzles to solve. Some are simple enough to solve, but things do get tricky as you progress. Solving the puzzles are a critical part of the game, as they will help you discover your identity (it’s unknown in the beginning) and how you got on the island in the first place.

Controls in The Witness are simple and intuitive, with the game teaching you the ropes as you go in the start. To move, just tap on where you want to go, and you’ll walk over there. Swiping horizontally on the screen lets you move the camera around so you can check what’s surrounding you. Tapping on puzzle screens takes you into the puzzle. If you double-tap where you want to go, it makes your character run instead of walk. A tap with two fingers stops you in your tracks.

You can download the game for $7.99.

In The Talos Principle, players wake up from a deep sleep and find themselves on an island that’s filled with ancient ruins and technology. It’s a bit similar to The Witness, but you’re a robot here, rather than a human, though you have a human-like consciousness.

There’s a voice that speaks to you as you wander around, providing guidance, but the question remains: who are you and what is your purpose? The answers to these questions reveal themselves as you make progress on the island by solving puzzles.

The game is $4.99.

Old Man’s Journey is a puzzle adventure game that is more about the experience and journey than the final destination. Guide an old man safely along his journey and uncover his past through memories, and discover his heartache, regret, and hope.

The game is beautiful and the story is told completely through imagery, with no words involved. It’s a fantastic experience for anyone who wants a game that is relatable.

It’s a $4.99 download. The game is also available on Apple Arcade.