Each issue typically has a three to six page article about gaming and hobbies as a broad subject.

Recent versions of these have been based on traveling to various locations in the world, though this aspect is only used for the theme of each sub-puzzle.

Another feature of "Pencilwise" in recent years has been a "Puzzlecraft" column, authored by Mike Selinker and Thomas Snyder, that describes how readers can make their own puzzles, placed alongside puzzles created by the described techniques.

Wild Cards is the section that typically contains one or two pages of puzzle miscellany, such as word games, trivia, or chess problems.

The December issue each year includes a compilation of new and noteworthy games in its Games 100 list, similar to the German Spiel des Jahres, and usually includes a contest based on this list.

The standard contest has since been reinstated, with a $100 cash prize for the winner and one-year subscriptions/renewals for five runners-up.

Earlier in its publishing history, the Letters page would also include an "Envelope of the Month", typically a highly decorated envelope or postcard sent in by a reader in response to a contest or general correspondence with the magazine.

One was a scavenger hunt - items in the hunt were usually not rare but could be difficult to locate; others involved finding items meeting specific requirements, requiring interpretation, some puzzle solving, or research.

Games has also published a number of books containing "best-of" puzzle collections.

Will Shortz started at Games in November 1978 and edited the magazine from 1989 to 1990 upon PSC's bankruptcy; he returned upon Bits & Pieces' resuming publication in late 1991, and remained until late 1993 when he became editor of The New York Times crossword puzzle.

The current editorial team includes Jennifer Orehowsky, with help from Kappa Publishing editor Karen Powell.