Puzzle Spy International

Puzzle Spy International is a lateral word puzzle game about tracking down jewel thieves. You play as a 1960s secret agent who must find the thieves and recover the stolen jewel, solving lots of puzzles along the way. Puzzle Spy International combines a lighthearted plot with highly challenging, original puzzles.

The story is told through visual novel scenes following a globetrotting spy as she interviews suspects, travels around the world, and (optionally) flirts with everyone while on the trail of the jewel thieves. The thieves have left behind a trail of clues in the form of ciphers, cryptic notes, and encoded maps, and you must crack each one to advance the case. Unlike most spy adventure games, it doesn't have any point-and-click elements: the puzzles are always stand-alone and never revolve around finding the right prop to click on or using an inventory item in the right place.

Instead, the puzzles are typically word puzzles that require lateral thinking. For instance, one involves organizing luggage tags with letters on them, while another features words that must be placed correctly to fill in a jigsaw-like map. They never include explicit instructions and every puzzle has a unique mechanic, so there's an element of rule discovery.

Additionally, the puzzles may have multiple levels of reasoning, like puzzlehunt challenges: you must solve the puzzle, and then you must figure out what the solution tells you that helps you on your journey. Because of the number of aha moments involved, this game works well when solved as a group. There's also a robust hint system and an answer check system in case you get stuck.

Set in the 1960s, Puzzle Spy International has a colorful mid-century modern art style, a soundtrack that evokes classic spy movies, and a female protagonist with a cool mod fashion style. But despite the cartoon art style, this is a game that will challenge any word puzzle fan. And if you're looking for more, the demo is its own stand-alone puzzle.

This description was written by Gwen C. Katz.