Enigmash

I’ve always had trouble with Puzzlescript games. I’m not a graphics guy at all, but that very raw pixelated visual style is usually the standard for those games and yeah, it’s special. The readability is not good and understanding the mechanics can be hard sometimes as there are also no animations at all.
That said, now that I can write about them on my website, I’m actually curious and more motivated to explore this kind of game.

Enigmash is a sokoban puzzle game about switching dimensions. At first, the dimension switch is used as transitions between puzzles, you learn the different basic properties of all these worlds.
The tunnel dimension is in 2D, gravity applies normally and every block is transformed into rocks that are also affected by gravity. The beach and grass dimensions are both in a top down view where you can freely roam, but while the grass dimension has normal blocks and is surrounded by brick walls, the blocks of the beach dimension can be glued together to form shapes that can also be pushed into water.
There are other dimensions, but you get the idea.

Enigmash is linear and in tutorial mode until you reach the crossroads, where the game opens and truly begins. Experiencing a 2D -> 3D switch is already weird enough in transitions, but what about inside puzzles? The puzzles usually consist of a pair of dimensions, there’s at least one button you can use to trigger the switch, either by stepping on it or bringing a block on top.
I really liked how inspired the puzzles are. They are small, and the combinations of specific dimensions allow for very diverse and precise puzzles. Which is why it’s important to analyze and understand how these dimensions work, the puzzles are too precise and clever to be solved with brute force.
Apart from the final puzzle, I never had the impression the game was hard though. It manages to find that sweet spot where everything is challenging without ever getting overwhelming.

Because it’s only a browser game, there are no options and the checkpoint system can lead to fatal errors. The crossroads has four paths you can take, you’ll need to solve at least three of them. They all reward you with a block you can use as a bridge to reach the final part, and I advise you to stock them in a safe place before taking another path. The game also warns you: if you’re stuck and want to try another path, always reset the last puzzle before you do so.
You can undo as you want, even after a reset or a checkpoint in case you want to try things, but be careful.

Enigmash is a solid game with a good concept and very good puzzle design. I’m glad I’m finally taking the time to play less known games like this, maybe I’ll end up fully getting used to this kind of visuals after all.
Recommended.

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Developer: Jack Lance
Publisher: Jack Lance
Platform: Browser
Release Date: November 5, 2019