About This Game Patterna is a logic puzzle game for people who think that HexCells is far too easy. It features a highly customizable random level generator, a level editor, more than 70 levels, and an enchanting minimalist soundtrack by Alex Cottrell.In Patterna, each level is a network of nodes (also known as a graph). In a way similar to HexCells or Minesweeper, each node is ultimately in one of two states (known as pattern and non-pattern). Initially, most nodes' states are unknown. It is the player's task to correctly classify these unrevealed nodes using information based on distance, connectivity, and color. Correctly classifying a node may reveal more information that in turn helps you to solve the level. More than 70 levels, plus a tutorial Procedurally generated levels with plenty of options for the level generator Enchanting minimalist original soundtrack by Alex Cottrell Absolutely no guessing needed Level editor and Steam Workshop support included Extensive gameplay statistics 7aa9394dea Title: PatternaGenre: IndieDeveloper:Sebastian SchönerPublisher:Sebastian SchönerRelease Date: 3 Oct, 2016 Patterna Free Download [License] An enjoyable puzzle game, Patterna kept my attention for dozens and dozens of hours. You need to determine which cells are or are not marked as part of 'the pattern' based on given distribution\/adjacency information, somewhat akin to Minesweeper or Hexcells. Like the latter of those, all puzzles are set up in a way that you never strictly need to make a random guess.The thing that's really singular about Patterna in my view is the robustness of the random level generator. I was able to find settings that generated interesting random puzzles more often than not. The only issue is that sometimes the chain of reasoning was difficult enough that I needed to break out pen and paper and brute force the next move, which generally felt more like bookkeeping than entertainment. On the whole, though, the game did a good job of hitting a reasonable middle ground of difficulty.. I love the variety, am mostly playing random smaller levels. There's larger levels if you want a challenge.. SHORT VERSION: This is a very well crafted numerical puzzler. While it has a bit of an initial difficulty hump to get over due to somewhat complicated rules, it will reward you with a good ten or so hours' worth of premade levels and a puzzle randomizer that does a good job of extending its longevity. Recommended with great confidence for other fans of more number-based puzzle games.LONG VERSIONThis is the rare occasion where my scanning of the Steam new releases every day pays off. Patterna as far as I can tell has received little press or reviews, but it happened to mention that it was inspired by Hexcells in its store description. That was enough to get me to try the demo, which was enough for me to pick up the game.It isn\u2019t really a ton like Hexcells, although it does share some of the same DNA. It\u2019s also rather tricky to explain. This was updated later but initially the tutorial was fifty or so stages long and it is undeniable that there is a bit of an initial hump to get over. I couldn\u2019t even follow the couple videos showing off the game before playing through said tutorial.The basic goal is to mark every node in a puzzle as either pattern or non-pattern. In the vast majority of puzzles these nodes are all interconnected via a web of connecting lines in a variety of patterns. There are a few sources of info upon which to determine the orientation of the nodes. In the bottom left corner there are a pair of numbers, the larger number indicating how many nodes have yet to be marked and the smaller (or when near finished even) number indicating how many of those nodes are pattern ones. Above those may be one of four colors (which can be customized for those who are colorblind or just like to mess with the colors). These will have two numbers associated with each of them that function the same way as the aforementioned ones, just relating to those nodes with a marker of that color on them. It is worth noting that some puzzles may have no colors, some just a few, and others where the number will change as you progress.The other main source of info is on the nodes themselves. Pattern nodes may have a number on them that indicates how many pattern nodes are connected in sequence without a non-pattern break. Worth noting here is that some connecting lines only transmit info one direction, so while a pattern node can continue to \u201ccount\u201d while going along an arrow way it will not register a connection if trying to go against it. Meanwhile non-pattern nodes can contain a wider array of info. A number on a non-pattern node indicates that said number of nearby nodes are pattern ones. A single circle around the number indicates that said number only relates to those nodes within one connection of that particular node. If it instead has two or three circles around the number, then the range expands to every node within two or three connections of it. Said numbers may also be within brackets or a pair of dashes. If in a bracket then all the of pattern nodes indicated within that range must all be connected, while if within dashes then there must be at least one break between them.On top of this as you unveil more nodes as either pattern or non some of them will likely give you additional bits of info. This can be any of the bits of info mentioned in the previous paragraph, but occasionally one of the non-pattern ones will unveil a colored number. When you get one of these a number of the unmarked nodes will suddenly get a marking of that color and said color will also appear on the bottom left.Fortunately the game does give you a few tools to help make dealing with all of this easier. By clicking on one of these numbered nodes every node they can possibly affect becomes highlighted in one of four colors, as up to four nodes can be activated as such at a given time. This is a handy way to see which nodes\u2019 info overlaps as often that is the key to solving part of the puzzle. I must note to be careful with the pattern node highlighting as it shows not only all the ones the pattern can extend to but also the ones one node removed as if you know it will be three nodes long you also know the fourth node must be non-pattern. Just because you see the number 3 for example on a pattern node doesn\u2019t mean that there are going to be three nodes in the highlighted range that will be marked as pattern; it could be less if marking one node connects you to another pattern group, it could be more as certain perimeter ones can end up being pattern ones while not actually connecting to the numbered group. An update also gave one the ability to preliminarily mark a node as pattern or not so you can see how it\u2019d affect things without having to commit to it first. This is profoundly useful at times.Now, that\u2019s a lot of typing up just to get the rather complicated basics established. It can also mostly be skipped (shoulda mentioned that beforehand\u2026). What is ultimately important is how strong the puzzles designed around those basics are, and I must say that the ones in Patterna are on average very well realized. They are broken into groups based around a given concept or arrangement that have their own difficulty curve, which range from \u201cnot too hard\u201d to \u201coh god my brain!\u201d. If I had to level a complaint against them it is that some of them felt like they had to be brute forced after a certain point, although it is certainly possible that if I was a bit more clever that would have been less common. Even with that this is a very strong set of puzzles that should challenge a player for likely a good ten or so hours.What nudges it to a higher level is that it has a random puzzle generator that regularly produces puzzles that may lack a layer of refinement seen in the better premade ones but that are nonetheless on average pretty good in their own right. I\u2019m generally not a big fan of randomized design, and even in Hexcells Infinite the random ones left me feeling a bit cold, but they work well here and you are given a decent amount of options to tweak before generation. There is also a Steam workshop integration that is collecting dust as\u2026 well the game has gotten like zero press.And that ends up being a shame as this is pretty strong numerical puzzler all things considered. My Steam playtime puts me at about 30 hours after a few weeks, and while that is inflated due to me minimizing and doing something else on the computer from time to time it really sunk its hooks into me. If you like these type of puzzlers then I would strongly recommend at least giving the demo a shot as I\u2019d hate to see such a good game never get a legit chance to find its audience. Also worthy of a write-in award nomination.. Great puzzle game, carries on where Minesweeper left off. Every puzzle is soluble without guessing, and you can choose your level of difficulty.. Patterna is another game in the style of Hexcells. However, unlike Hexcells (and other variants I've played), this game uses graphs rather than cells. This allows more complicated connections than the others allow. Not sure if the main levels will ever be non-planar graphs but the custom levels certainly can be. This would allow more complexity than would be possible using cells whatever shape you make them. With planar graphs, it is still possible to replicate them using just cells but the shapes may be complicated (as Tametsi does)It has a few different types of clues for solving and this can get complicated to follow compared to other games. I haven't played it as much yet as the other games (hexcells and tametsi) but I can certainly see it is a very good game.One thing I really like is it punishes you if you guess. The game knows if you could have deduced something with the current information. I like to make sure I solve levels properly and this makes it much easier to do that.My maths background means I especially like that it uses graphs. Graph theory was one of my favourite fields in maths I studied so I really like that.I'd say this game is only for those that truly love games like hexcells (and found it too easy), it is much more complicated than that game.Edit:I have now seen a non-planar level though only 1 so far in the set of main levels. Though even the other levels get complicated enough. The directed graphs do add a nice twist that isn't seen on cell based games (Though it's still possible with those, it'd be hard to do without it being confusing.. Did you like Hexcells but felt that there weren't enough ways it could bend your brain? Do you want to try Minesweeper's evil step-uncle? Does staring at an array of circles trying to figure out what bit of information you're missing sound like a great way to spend some time?If you answered yes to all of these, Patterna is your game.This is now my go-to game for a short bit of mental exercise. I can pop up a random puzzle and spend 2 to 5 minutes working through it, or failing at it. Hardcore mode adds that little frisson of worry where one wrong click will cause you to lose the level and get an entirely new one in its place.. This is exactly what it says it is and looks like. Every word in the short blurb up there is completely true. There's a generous demo available.But what you can't see from the screenshots is that the sound design and music are both excellent.. This is indeed very much inspired by Hexcells. There are more mechanics, but it follows the same rule that every level has a solution that can be figured out without guessing.If you liked Hexcells, get this, you'll like this one too.Visuals are very utilitarian, I think revamping those would go a long way in making this game a lot more successful. It currently doesn't look like a game that's worth $10, but I think it is.The tutorial is not that great. I would have preferred a tutorial that was more "baked" into the game, there's too much text for my liking. Stay the course, just give it 10 minutes to go through a few levels and it'll get you hooked.Music is ok, a bit repetitive.Overall, a great puzzle game with some execution flaws on the outside.. This is a masterpiece, I won't need another puzzle game for a LOOOOOONG time, maybe even forever, I feel in love
Updated: Mar 11, 2020