Curses

Curses is big, but it's not just a pile of puzzles. It has a solid story. The game world has interesting structures, which you gradually puzzle out, and several recurring themes (distinctive types of useful objects, ways to move around, written languages, sources of hints, etc.) which tie the world together. So it's quite interesting and enjoyable throughout.

Even if you need to look at a walkthrough, which is likely. Some things are easy to miss. Many of the puzzles require considerable intuition to solve. The world is so large, and there are so many things in it, that it's impossible to try everything everywhere; the pieces you need to solve a puzzle are often nearby, but not always. Order matters: you can get stuck by consuming or transforming an object too soon, or going somewhere without having a way to return. And, unfortunately, some irregularities make some puzzles more difficult than might have been intended.

Don't hesitate to use the in-game hints fully. Keep notes on seemingly useful things you haven't used yet and on puzzles you haven't solved yet, so you can more easily think about them without constantly criss-crossing the wide world. And pay close attention to every line of text; sometimes only a single shared word is your clue.

Some considerations that might get you past rough patches without giving away any specific puzzles:

- Speech is versatile. (Spoiler - click to show)As well as living things, some inanimate objects can be spoken to directly.
- Speech is sometimes tricky. (Spoiler - click to show)At least one puzzle requires you to say something more directly, in a way that would usually be an error, rather than saying it in one of the documented ways.
- Some NPCs are not as responsive as you might hope. (Spoiler - click to show)An NPC to whom you're supposed to, for example, give an object, nonetheless might not react when you merely show it to them.
- Room descriptions are usually good, but one room (Spoiler - click to show)neglects to mention an essential object on return visits.

And you'll likely still need a walkthrough occasionally. Decide how to decide when you're really stumped and go ahead and look. There will still be plenty of satisfying puzzling to come.