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Computer puzzle game is a genre of computer games that emphasize puzzle solving. The types of puzzles involved can involve logic, strategy, pattern recognition, sequence solving, word completion or, in some cases, just pure luck.
Before there ever were video games (as we would recognise them) there were jigsaw puzzles and the Rubik's Cube, today's puzzle game forefathers. The genre can be difficult to describe: the gameplay is usually abstract (but not always) often involving arranging geometric shapes to fulfill some goal or constraint. Often edge matching or colour matching plays an important role. Puzzle games usually strive to have a pick-up-and-play accessibility to them and to have an addictive quality.
Puzzle games are relatively easy to develop and to take from dedicated arcade units, to home video game consoles, to personal digital assistants and mobile phones.
Tetris is widely regarded as the pinnacle of this genre, despite not having any real advertising nor a cute character to garner attention. Solitaire and Minesweeper are worth mentioning because of the huge installed user base (they come bundled with the Microsoft Windows operating system).
Tetris is also believed to have spawned the versus-puzzle genre. The screen is typically split vertically in two separate playarea's, and two (or sometimes more) players compete against each other. When one player performs a well-played move or a chain or combo, the other player is obstructed with extra blocks or blockades. Good examples are Puyo Puyo, Puzzle Bobble or Tetris Attack.
See also: video game, list of computer puzzle games
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