SymbolicPuzzles

Some puzzles in the game seem to be symbolic in that they represent something in The Witness' world. This is obviously the case for puzzles such as those of the Orchard that represent nearby trees or those in the Keep that represent the mazes you walk in. In this page we will however restrict our analysis to puzzles with symbolic features that do not have to be noticed to solve the puzzle, so that these symbolic features can easily be overlooked.

A particular family of symbolic puzzles is the one of puzzles that control moving elements, such as the Marsh's platforms. They are quite obvious and will be discussed separately.

Simple Symbolic Puzzles

 * 1) The first puzzle in the game is symbolic, it represents what we see when the game starts: a horizontal line leading to a circle. It is linked to an environmental puzzle that can be done here.First puzzle.jpg
 * 2) The second puzzle is also symbolic, it represents the player's actions to get to the surface from the start of the game: straight ahead in the tunnel, then turn on the left, then straight ahead — the whole thing having a general upward direction.Second puzzle.jpg
 * 3) The puzzles that open doors obviously represent the door to open.
 * 4) The puzzles that activate lasers represent the telescopic beam holding the laser that get out of the box:Puzzle laser marsh.jpg
 * 5) The puzzles that let you call the boat are shaped like a boat:Puzzle boat call sawmill.jpg
 * 6) And the boat map is also a puzzle:Puzzle boat map.jpg
 * 7) Obviously, the puzzle on the windmill door represent the windmill blades:Puzzle windmill entrance door.jpg
 * 8) In the theater, the puzzle on the first door is shaped as a map of the theater, with the white dots representing the projection room:Puzzle theater first door.jpg
 * 9) And finally, the puzzle on top of the river obviously represent the river below. But it's worth noticing that if most of us interpret this puzzle as a hint to discover environmental puzzles, it can also be understood as a hint that puzzles can represent things in the world.Puzzle river.jpg

Less obvious representations
To be continued…