Puzzle Lovers is the latest mystery featured in the Adventure Escape Mysteries app. Haiku's first romance-adventure brings you the world's greatest puzzles in the most beautiful locales. In the interview below, learn more about the game designer and behind the scenes of this brilliant game.

What advice would you give to an aspiring game designer when starting out?

• Back up your work!
• You are more unique than you realize. Everything you and your family have gone through will bring interesting variety to your games.
• Keep your expenses low. 
• Cache ideas for the future. I add screenshots to folders in Dropbox every day. 
• It’s good to have deeper meanings in your game, but you still have to entertain.

What games do you play on your own time other than AEM?
I try to be careful about playing games because I get pretty addicted. I’m co-designing three games right now so I need to stay on track. But I am playing The Queen’s Gambit Chess by Ripstone Games. I never learned chess as a kid – my slow learning curve was too humiliating. This app builds up very small chess puzzles and it’s infinitely patient. As part of my Puzzle Lovers research, I watched YouTube chess influencers and they’re a fun subculture. It seems like every game designer should understand chess!

Were there any major changes in Puzzle Lovers from when it was first designed?
Yes! Initially, we were sticking close to The Covenant’s coding, which only allows for one player character. That’s not good enough for a dating show. I asked if we could give the player more choices. And our brilliant engineer Christine Blaich found a way. Now the player can choose between eight characters. both male and female, and fifteen names. Everything feels more personal. Let us know if you love it! 🙂 

What puzzle are you the most pleased with how it turned out?
I’m most pleased with the puzzles other designers contributed to help me make my deadlines. Amy Fisher designed River Crossing in Puzzle Lovers chapter 5, and Motorcycle Race in the VIP chapter. Andrew Lee designed Market Manipulator in the VIP chapter. Of my own puzzles, I’d say the Untangle Parachute puzzle. It’s an exciting start to chapter 2.

What kind of player would be most interested in a game like Puzzle Lovers?
Anyone who wants to see the world, make friends, fall in love, or make money. Clever people like you are appreciated in this game. Also you learn how to untangle your parachute during free fall.

Play Puzzle Lovers now in the Adventure Escape Mysteries app!