Crafting Unforgettable Puzzles: My Quest for Enduring Engagement with Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle

🀄 Brain Mahjong Puzzle - Coming Mid-May 2026!

Hiroshi Studio's brain-training puzzle game "Brain Mahjong Puzzle - Mahjong Solitaire & Shisen-Sho" is launching for Android in mid-May 2026. With 97 Mahjong Solitaire layouts and 60 Shisen-Sho layouts, daily brain training has never been more fun. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hiroshistudio.brain_mahjong&pli=1

Hello everyone! This is Hiroshi from Hiroshi Studio.

Today, I want to talk about my latest creation, Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle - Mahjong Solitaire & Sichuan Province, which just entered closed testing. I'm going to pull back the curtain and share some candid insights into the development process, focusing especially on how I aimed to keep players engaged and coming back for more, without ever feeling bored.

The Cornerstone of Engagement: The Assurance of "Always Winnable"

As a game developer, one of the biggest challenges I constantly grapple with is the wall of "boredom." No matter how fun a game is, players eventually move on. But how can we extend that period of enjoyment and make them think, "I want to play this again"? I believe one key answer lies in the comforting assurance that "the game is always winnable."

In puzzle games like Mahjong Solitaire and Sichuan Province, if you simply randomize the tile arrangement, you inevitably run into "unwinnable" boards. That means no matter how hard a player tries, there's no path to victory. This is incredibly frustrating for players. If they think, "Oh, bad luck again," or "I just wasted my time," they might never launch the game again.

That's why, with "Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle," I was absolutely committed to one thing: generating only boards that are guaranteed to be clearable from start to finish, using a unique logic.

A Reverse Approach to Eliminate Unwinnable Scenarios

How did I ensure every board is solvable? I actually built the algorithm with a somewhat counter-intuitive, "reverse playback" approach to board generation.

Typically, in puzzle games, you start with a completed board and figure out how to solve it. But my approach was to "imagine the final, cleared state (where all tiles are gone) and then place tiles backward from there."

1. First, we start with an empty board, representing the fully cleared state.
2. From there, we randomly select pairs of tiles and place them back onto the board. However, we do this while strictly checking placement conditions to ensure they will always be in a "clearable state" later on.
3. This process is repeated to construct the final initial board.

This way, players don't have to worry about whether the board is "broken" or "unsolvable," allowing them to focus purely on the puzzle itself. Of course, I've prepared many challenging layouts, so it's by no means too easy. But I wanted to eliminate the frustration I, as a player, felt when a game was "impossible from the start," rather than just difficult due to my own mistakes.

Implementing this algorithm was probably the most mentally demanding part of the development. But I truly believe this "no unwinnable boards" design is the foundation for an engaging game experience that keeps players coming back, confidently thinking, "Alright, I'll get it this time!"

Two Games, Five Modes: "Infinite Variety" to Match Your Mood

Another powerful weapon in the fight against boredom is rich variation.

"Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle" includes two classic Mahjong tile puzzle games: Mahjong Solitaire and Sichuan Province (Shisenshou). Each offers a distinct kind of fun, but to further combat boredom, I've prepared a wealth of modes.

Mahjong Solitaire: Deep 3D Puzzles with 97 Layouts

Mahjong Solitaire is the familiar puzzle where you select and remove two matching tiles from a stack of three-dimensional tiles. The rules are simple – a tile can be selected if no other tiles are on top and at least one side is open. But it's a game that demands strategy: which tiles do you clear first?

This game features an impressive 97 different layouts! With three difficulty levels (Easy, Normal, Hard), you can choose based on your mood or skill level. "Today, I want to quickly clear an easy one," or "Let's challenge a difficult layout that requires deep thought"—it's great to be able to switch up your play style depending on the day.

Sichuan Province: A Brain-Teasing Matching Puzzle with 60 Layouts, Where Turns Are Key

Sichuan Province, on the other hand, is a brain-training puzzle where you clear matching tiles arranged on a flat plane by connecting them with a path that makes no more than two turns.

It demands a completely different kind of thinking from Mahjong Solitaire, making it perfect for a change of pace. It also boasts 60 layouts across three difficulty levels. Initially, you might find it surprisingly easy because the outer perimeter of the board can be used as a path, but the challenge significantly ramps up with higher difficulties.

Dive Deeper with 5 Unique Game Modes

And I didn't just stop at including two games. I've prepared five special modes to prevent boredom:

1. Normal Mode: For when you want to play at your own pace.
2. Time Attack: The thrill of clearing the next pair within 10 seconds! This excitement brings out a different kind of focus compared to regular play.
3. 1-Turn (Sichuan Province only): A higher difficulty mode where paths can only make one turn. Requires sharper thinking.
4. No Outer Path (Sichuan Province only): Another mode that adds strategic depth by disallowing paths along the board's exterior.
5. Combo (Sichuan Province only): Earn bonus scores for consecutive clears! The satisfaction of chaining combos is addictive.

With so many modes, players should be able to enjoy the game in different ways every day. "Today, I'll test my skills in Time Attack!" or "Maybe I'll put my brain to the test with 1-Turn today." I wanted to provide an experience that makes players excited, wondering, "What should I play next?"

Thoughtful Features That Elevate Playability and Fun

To keep players engaged, it's not just about the inherent fun of the game itself, but also about ease of use in the details and a touch of playful charm. Let me share some unique features that, as an indie developer, I poured my heart into.

A Helping Hand with the Hint Function

Even with "guaranteed clearability," some puzzles can still be tough and lead to getting stuck. In such moments, just tap the light bulb (💡) button in the top right corner. It will highlight a clearable pair for you. While your score might decrease slightly, this ensures you won't give up feeling "it's impossible!" and can continue playing comfortably to the end.

Extensive Customization to Make It Your Own

For long-term engagement, customization that makes players feel "this is *my* game" is crucial.

• Beyond simply turning BGM on or off,
• You can decide whether to use the hint function,
• And choose from three background patterns: Deep Green (Japanese style), Cream, or Night Sky (Dark Mode).

One feature I personally focused on was the tile artwork switching function. While "Authentic Mahjong Tiles" are great, I wanted a wider audience to enjoy the game! So, I also prepared cute "Fruits & Sweets" themed tiles.

In fact, these are 34 SVG-based tile designs that I meticulously created myself! I classified them by theme: fruits (for Manzu), sweets (for Pinzu), juice (for Souzu), and celebration items (for Jihai), aiming for designs that are fun just to look at. I even thought about how appealing they would be to children while drawing them.

Zoom In, Zoom Out: Pinch-to-Scale Game Board

Especially in the "difficult" mode of Sichuan Province, the entire board can sometimes appear too intricate to see clearly. That's why I implemented a feature allowing you to pinch-to-zoom the board from 50% to 200%. You can zoom out for an overall perspective or zoom in to inspect specific tiles. There's also a "Reset to 100%" button in the AppBar for a quick reset.

Reaching a Global Audience with Multi-Language Support

As Hiroshi Studio's second release following "SakuraMap," I wanted this game to be enjoyed by an even wider audience. To achieve this, I implemented multi-language support for Japanese and English. Utilizing Flutter's standard features (arb files and flutter_localizations), the game automatically switches languages based on your phone's settings. I'm also considering future support for Chinese and Korean.

Universal Design: Enjoyable for Seniors and Children Alike

As the name "Brain Training" suggests, I primarily targeted the senior generation. Because of this, I strongly emphasized an accessible design that is easy for anyone to use.

• Large, easy-to-see tiles.
• High contrast for comfortable viewing, even with presbyopia.
• Simple tap-only operations.
• Provision of modes for relaxed play.
• Hint function to prevent getting stuck midway.
• The ability to switch between Mahjong Solitaire and Sichuan Province for a change of pace.

I believe these considerations ultimately led to a universal design that can be enjoyed by a wide range of ages, from children to adults. I developed this game imagining my own family and friends playing it, because I wanted to create a "game that makes everyone smile."

Stress-Free & Completely Free! The Delicate Balance of Ads and User Experience

As an indie developer, continuous app development and operation require some form of revenue. However, causing stress to users would defeat the purpose entirely.

"Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle" is completely free to play. To sustain development, I display banner and interstitial ads, but I have my own strict principles regarding them:

• Absolutely no ads during actual gameplay.
• Ads are only displayed between plays.
• No in-app purchases whatsoever.

I paid meticulous attention to the timing of ad displays. I, too, dislike it when ads interrupt me in the middle of an engaging activity. With this approach, I hope to allow everyone to enjoy the game as stress-free as possible.

Visual Evolution and the Technical Journey of an Indie Developer

Finally, let's touch upon some behind-the-scenes stories and technical challenges during development.

This app is my second release. Building on the experience gained from my first app, "SakuraMap" (an app to find cherry blossom spots across Japan), this was a new challenge in game development.

From Flat to 3D: My Obsession with Tile Visuals

Initially, the tiles had a much flatter appearance during development. But I felt the "3D depth was lacking" compared to competing apps. So, I significantly enhanced the visual quality by strengthening the layer offset (stair-like tilt) and adding shadows and highlights, assuming a light source from the top-left.

Just these small adjustments made the tiles look much more realistic and tightened up the overall atmosphere of the game. I hope these subtle touches contribute to players' immersion.

Flutter: The Efficiency Engine Behind the Scenes

For the technical stack, I once again chose Flutter. Written in Dart, Flutter excels in cross-platform development and is a truly empowering framework for indie developers.

By combining various packages like flutter_localizations for multi-language support, audioplayers for BGM, shared_preferences for saving settings, in_app_review for review requests, google_mobile_ads for ads, and flutter_svg for displaying SVG images, I was able to proceed with development efficiently. In particular, flutter_svg played a huge role in beautifully displaying the custom tile artwork I designed.

Currently, it's only available for Android, but I'm considering an iOS release in the future. The ability to support both platforms with relatively less effort, thanks to Flutter, is a major advantage.

Conclusion: Aiming for a Game Loved for Years to Come

"Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle - Mahjong Solitaire & Sichuan Province" isn't meant to be just another puzzle game. I created it with the goal of making an app that players can genuinely enjoy for a long, long time.

The peace of mind from "always clearable" boards, the infinite variations offered by two games and five modes, and the user-friendliness of thoughtful features—all of these represent my challenge towards "engaging game design" that makes you want to play again.

I plan to keep rolling out updates, including statistics (clear counts, fastest times, etc.), daily challenges, an achievement system, and an iOS release. I'd love to hear your feedback!

Thank you for your continued support of Hiroshi Studio and "Brain Training Mahjong Puzzle!"

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🀄 Brain Mahjong Puzzle - Mahjong Solitaire & Shisen-Sho

97 Mahjong Solitaire Layouts + 60 Shisen-Sho Layouts
Endless brain training with a wide variety of stages!

📅 Coming Mid-May 2026 on Google Play

Stay tuned at Hiroshi Studio Blog for updates

Thank you for reading! https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hiroshistudio.brain_mahjong&pli=1