Hi everyone!
The Talos Principle is back with Reawakened, and we're incredibly happy to see our modding community alive and kicking. More than 80 community puzzles have been published in the Workshop since its launch, so we thought it was fair to play through them and shine a light on some of the most creative and well-crafted submissions. After all, these user-made creations deserve recognition for their ingenuity, design, and the unique challenges they bring to the world of The Talos Principle.

In each spotlight, we'll feature standout puzzles and a few words from their creators, offering insights into their design process and what inspired them.

Let’s kick off this series with a look at Back To Reality.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3464331222

This puzzle makes excellent use of connectors, fans, hexahedron, and recorder devices, cleverly combining them in a way that feels both challenging and rewarding. While it leans toward the more difficult side, don’t let that or the presence of a recorder discourage you. The puzzle is built around a series of smart, well-thought-out steps that will make you feel clever as you progress. By the time you reach the final move, the sense of accomplishment is incredibly satisfying leaving you with that classic "aha!" moment that we all strive for.

Back to Reality was created by Benzo, who was kind enough to give us a virtual sit-down and chat about the puzzle and what inspired it.

BASEMENT CHATS WITH YASEN

⚪ Hey Benzo, it's a pleasure to have you here! You've been a long-time puzzle enthusiast and creator, known for your iconic collections like Schrödinger’s Cat for the original Talos Principle, as well as many contributions to the Portal series. Could you tell us a bit more about your background? When did you first get into puzzle games, and what inspired you to start designing your own?

It all started in 2015. Braid was the first puzzle game I ever played. After seeing others create mods, I thought, Why not try it myself? I finished my first mod in 2016.

That same year, I started playing Portal and The Talos Principle. When I discovered that both games had Steam Workshop support, I began creating puzzles. The level editor for Portal was relatively easy to use, so I made a number of puzzles for it. The editor for The Talos Principle, however, was much more advanced, and at the time, I gave up on the idea of making puzzles for it.

But I actually loved The Talos Principle more—it had beautiful scenery, charming background music, and a fast player movement speed. So in 2018, I decided to learn how to use the Serious Editor through various resources, and eventually completed my project Schrödinger's Cat.

Later, in 2019, the Serious Editor was updated, which made many older Steam Workshop levels incompatible. As a result, I updated my levels and released Schrödinger’s Cat Level Pack 1 through 3.

⚪ With Reawakened introducing a new, more user friendly level editor that's accessible to the community, what tips would you give to new puzzle creators just starting out? Do you have a specific creative process when beginning a new puzzle, and what advice would you offer to help them get started and stay inspired?

You should have a solid understanding of the game mechanics. For example, knowing how high you can reach by stacking boxes helps determine how tall the walls in your puzzle should be. Understanding the character’s movement speed and jump distance is essential when planning gaps between platforms. And being familiar with how different props work allows you to design more effective and engaging prop based challenges.

If you come up with a puzzle idea, act on it right away so you don’t forget it. You can sketch it out on paper or use a drawing tool before building it in the level editor.

If you're running low on ideas, try playing more official puzzles or exploring creations made by other players you might find inspiration there.

Also, be open to feedback. Listening to others can help you catch unintended solutions. And if a particular solution ends up being too difficult or obscure, it’s perfectly fine to leave it out.

⚪ And to wrap things up, could you share a bit about your future creative plans? Can we look forward to more puzzles for Reawakened? Feel free to share anything else on your mind—or give a shoutout to anyone as we close out!

I'm working on Schrödinger's Cat: Reawakened, which will combine the levels from the original game with some brand-new ones. It will be released once all the puzzles are complete. Any future levels may be released as standalone additions.
By the way, I’m also eagerly waiting for the level editor for The Talos Principle 2!