The visual archive

Twelve games, twelve visual systems

A non-ranked guide to color, material, illustration and geometry in real mobile games. Original abstract covers are used in place of copied promotional art.

Tile-matching puzzleLevel-sized; flexible

Candy Crush Saga

Visual style: Glossy confectionery collage
Typical session: Level-sized; flexible

A dense, high-contrast board where material, shape and color work together to separate pieces.

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Connection puzzleObjective-sized

Two Dots

Visual style: Flat dots and illustrated worlds
Typical session: Objective-sized

Minimal play pieces sit against a broader travel-inspired illustration system.

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Spatial puzzleChapter checkpoints

Monument Valley

Visual style: Pastel impossible architecture
Typical session: Chapter checkpoints

Architecture, negative space and camera perspective turn each scene into a readable object.

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Endless journeyRun-based

Alto's Odyssey

Visual style: Layered atmospheric silhouettes
Typical session: Run-based

Light, weather and depth carry the interface while the control vocabulary stays restrained.

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Color-order puzzlePuzzle-sized

I Love Hue Too

Visual style: Geometric color spectra
Typical session: Puzzle-sized

Hue relationships are the subject, supported by shape and spatial order rather than decoration.

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Growth puzzleScene-sized

Prune

Visual style: Ink branches and quiet color fields
Typical session: Scene-sized

A reduced palette leaves the gesture, silhouette and changing balance of the composition visible.

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Network strategyExpandable run

Mini Metro

Visual style: Transit-map abstraction
Typical session: Expandable run

A functional diagram becomes the game surface, with line, symbol and spacing carrying state.

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Interactive narrativeChapter-based

Florence

Visual style: Watercolor panel illustration
Typical session: Chapter-based

Everyday gestures and editorial panels connect touch interaction with emotional pacing.

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Sliding number puzzleBoard-based

Threes!

Visual style: Characterful cards and soft grids
Typical session: Board-based

A compact grid gains personality through expressive tiles, sound and precise motion.

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Paper-fold color puzzlePuzzle-sized

KAMI 2

Visual style: Tactile paper geometry
Typical session: Puzzle-sized

Fold-like transitions and material texture clarify how color regions transform.

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Physics puzzleLevel-sized

Cut the Rope

Visual style: Toy-box cartoon clarity
Typical session: Level-sized

Large interactive objects and visible cause-and-effect keep the scene readable at phone scale.

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Connection puzzlePuzzle-sized

LYNE

Visual style: Muted geometric minimalism
Typical session: Puzzle-sized

Shape, line and careful spacing create a quiet alternative to highly illustrated puzzle boards.

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