The ‘biggest puzzle game ever’ is being released – its creator explains why it took 10 years

Jonathan Blow, a renowned American game developer and one of the pioneers of the modern indie game movement, has spent the past decade working on a game he believes to be the biggest puzzle game ever made. Titled The Order of the Sinking Star, the game is set to release on Thursday and contains approximately 1,500 puzzles, which Blow estimates could take around 500 hours to complete.

Blow's decision to create such a complex game, with roughly 1,500 puzzles, may seem impractical or unwise from a business perspective. However, Blow argues that he never makes decisions based on practicality or business sense. Instead, he allows his design to dominate the process, resulting in unique and innovative experiences. The game's blurb compares it to a "game design supercollider," as it combines four worlds viewed from overhead, built on the mechanics of four pre-existing free puzzle games from other designers (with their permission). These mechanics are then combined to create new and unique brainteasers.

Blow's decision to make something more experimental stems from his belief that the game industry has shifted its focus away from creating new experiences. He has been vocal about his opinions on the industry, criticizing social media games like Farmville and World of Warcraft's quest design as unethical. In response to these criticisms, Blow has chosen to focus on creating good games without engaging in political discussions.

He is also skeptical of AI, which was not part of the development process for The Order of the Sinking Star, despite recognizing it as an advancement.

Despite his rejection of AI, Blow acknowledges the potential dangers of relying too heavily on it in the future. He warns that the industry may face an uncertain time as newer creators may become too reliant on AI to code rather than learning programming themselves. Blow's refusal to compromise on any aspect of the game, including creating his own programming language (Jai) and custom engine, has contributed to the project's lengthy development time of ten years.

He believes that the unique aspects of the game, such as the challenging design and his own programming language, make it worth the wait for players and the gaming community.