How to Design Difficulty in Puzzle Games

How to Design Difficulty in Puzzle Games

Based on the Playliner research, here is a guide to designing difficulty:

1. Offer multiple difficulty tiers
• Easy, Hard, Super Hard — with clear visuals to indicate the level.

2. Use attempts, not win rate, to tune difficulty
• Low attempts (1–3) = Easy
• High attempts (20–35) = Hard

3. Follow a recommended difficulty curve
• Start easy (Levels 1–20) to build confidence
• Add a hard spike (Levels 20–30) to create challenge
• Introduce progressive increases and major paywalls after Level 50

4. Gradually introduce mechanics
• Let players master core gameplay before adding complexity.

5. Reward wisely
• Scale rewards with difficulty. Tougher levels should yield better prizes.

6. Test and iterate
• Track completion rates.
• Adjust blocker levels.
• Fine-tune using player feedback.
• Alternate between challenging and easier phases.

Make the game feel “just challenged enough” to keep trying.
Good puzzle design isn’t just about difficulty — it’s about balance.