Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords

2007 Infinite Interactive Casual

Windows 11With a fix

MacNot sold

LinuxGold

Steam DeckUnsupported

Gamicality score

Metacritic 844

OpenCritic Not rated

Steam players 831

How it’s combined

Playability today

3.5

Runs today4/5

Design today3/5

Steam user reviews

Very Positive

87%

1,072 reviews1

Get it on Steam

Facts checked November 1, 2026

Does Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords run on Windows 11, Apple Silicon Macs, Linux and Steam Deck?

Windows 11With a fix

Runs with a fix. See the steps below.1

Mac (Apple Silicon)Not sold

No Mac version is sold.

LinuxGold

Through Proton. ProtonDB: Gold, runs perfectly after tweaks.3

Steam DeckUnsupported

Unsupported, as rated by Valve.1

Played Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords lately?

One click, no account, so the next player knows. How we check where it runs

How to get Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords running today

If the game fails to start on Windows 10 or 11, enable DirectPlay under Windows Features (Legacy Components), a fix several players confirm in a Steam thread.
If a controller stops responding and the mouse no longer works, start the game with the controller unplugged to return to mouse control (Steam Community).

Synopsis

Puzzle Quest is a fantasy role-playing game in which every fight is a turn-based match-three duel against a computer opponent. You pick one of four classes, travel a world map taking quests, and spend gold and experience on spells, gear, mounts and a citadel.

Developer: Infinite Interactive
Released: 2007
Genre: Casual
Where to get it: Steam

Reception

Critics welcomed the mix of a familiar tile-matching puzzle with role-playing growth, and Eurogamer gave the handheld versions 8 out of 10 while noting doubts about whether the AI was simply lucky or cheating. Players today still call it addictive and long, with plenty of class and spell variety. The most common complaint, still raised in discussion threads in 2024, is that the AI appears to cheat through favorable tile drops, though other players reply that the normal difficulty AI is weak.

Playability today

The average of two parts, each from 1 to 5. Tap a check to see why. How it works

Runs today

4/5

Sold or given away today by an official source
Needs fan patches to run well on Windows 11
?Not confirmed yetSingle-player works without an internet connection
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
All of its content still works (servers, DLC, unlocks)
Two-player online and LAN play connect by direct IP, so no servers have shut down (PCGamingWiki).
Supports modern resolutions and widescreen
Widescreen works up to 1920×1200, though some 16:9 resolutions need a registry edit (PCGamingWiki).
Full controller support or remappable controls
Full controller support is listed, without button remapping (PCGamingWiki).
Not Steam Deck Verified or Playable
No intrusive DRM or required third-party launcher account
No pay-to-win or pushy microtransactions
No known game-breaking bugs in the current version
Startup failures on Windows 10 and later are fixed by enabling DirectPlay (Steam Community), and the only open issue PCGamingWiki lists is occasional audio crackling (PCGamingWiki).

Design today

3/5

Controls feel awkward on a modern controller or mouse and keyboard
The mouse controls are simple, but switching to gamepad mode with an Xbox controller often leaves the game unresponsive and locks out the mouse, a problem raised in more than one Steam thread. Source: steamcommunity.com, steamcommunity.com.
Menus, text or interface are hard to read on today's screens
The highest supported resolution is 1920×1200, with no 4K or ultrawide support, and some 16:9 resolutions need registry edits. Source: pcgamingwiki.com.
Saving is fair: free saves or frequent checkpoints, little lost progress
A lost battle still earns some experience, and battles and quests can be redone without losing progress. Only one save per hero is kept by default, and extra slots need a file rename. Source: eurogamer.net, pcgamingwiki.com.
It teaches itself: no guide needed to make progress
The core rules are standard match-three swaps, with skulls dealing damage and colored tiles building mana for spells, and a review of the original release finds none of it hard to grasp. Source: eurogamer.net.
Pacing drags: grind, filler or forced backtracking
Battles hinge on random tile drops, and both Eurogamer and a 2024 thread describe streaks of AI luck that make fights feel unfair and force retries. Retrying keeps progress, but the frustration is the most repeated complaint. Source: eurogamer.net, steamcommunity.com, steamcommunity.com.
Camera and movement never fight the player
Battles take place on a fixed board and travel uses a static world map, so there is no camera to manage. Source: eurogamer.net.