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Block by Block is essentially the 7-piece Soma Cube, invented by Piet Hein, but with a new presentation. Sivhy Farhi was responsible for researching new shapes which are included in the form of 60 challenging puzzles. Presented in a light blue durable plastic, the game is also the most difficult in the series.

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The cards are not separated by difficulty, so you can choose the ones you like most and the difficulty should be about the same for all of them. If you get stuck with any of the challenges you can always flip the cards and check out the hints at the back that help you see how the pieces should be placed. Some of the challenges are a little difficult to see how the back side of the image should look like. One strategy is to try and build the shape as you see it in the image and the rest will eventually come to you. Each of the 60 challenges have multiple solutions, so there's many ways to achieve the same objective.


Closing Comments:

Whether you prefer 2D or 3D puzzles, the "By" series have something for everybody. The Block by Block may be the hardest, but it's also the most versatile, giving you the ability to built millions of different shapes with the 7 pieces provided.

Availability: Block by Block can be purchased at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com. More ThinkFun games here.

Recently, I reviewed the Shape by Shape game from ThinkFun, one of their four "By" series, and I was quite impressed with the versatility of the game, which allows you to create all kinds of interesting shapes and patterns. Now, I've spent some time with another one of these fascinating games, the Square by Square, and I'm equally excited by its capability of pattern-making.

This time, instead of focusing on a Tangram-like concept, the makers of this game, Yoshikatsu Hara and Yoshio Kimura, were inspired by the nature of polyominoes (pieces made by joining square units into different shapes). In the game you can see a mixture of monominoes, dominoes, trominoes and tetrominoes. There are a total of 14 pieces, eight blue and six green, and with them you can create numerous patterns and shapes. The game already includes 60 challenge cards with figures for you to solve, but when you finish these you can resort to your imagination and creative skills to create your own patterns (see the example below, with my initials).

The goal of the game is to create an image from the challenge cards provided. The card only shows the shape, in green, and the rest of the frame is filled in blue. You'll have to use the green pieces to create the shape and then combine it with the blue pieces to complete the image. All pieces must be used, and you have to pay close attention to the relative position of the pattern in relation to the frame's borders, so you don't get stuck. If you do get stuck, you'll find hints at the back of each card to help you solve it, but I believe you won't need it that often...

From what I was able to experience so far, the Square by Square is the easiest game of the four, because the monominoes and dominoes ensure you have lots of possibilities to place them on the board. However, that doesn't mean it's not fun to play with it. In fact, it means it's easier to create your own patterns as well. Another perk of this game being easier is that each challenge has multiple solutions, many ways to reach the same goal.

The Square by Square is the perfect puzzle to get started on packing puzzles, because you'll learn more clearly the relationships between the different types of polyominoes and how they interact with each other. It will give you the confidence to try more demanding puzzles and, ultimately, enjoy them best.

Availability: I got the Square by Square at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com. You can also find there many other games from ThinkFun.

ThinkFun has a very interesting selection when it comes to logic games, which caters to all skill levels and personal tastes. One particular type of game that I find really interesting is their collection of four pattern games that I like to call the "By" series: Shape by Shape; Square by Square; Brick by Brick and Block by Block. These games have the ability of creating all kinds of 2D and 3D images, recognizable objects or shapes, using only a few pieces. The game featured in this review is the Shape by Shape, invented by Nobuyuki Yoshigahara, and is reminiscent of a well known classic puzzle, the Tangram.

The game actually reminds me of another great game (presentation-wise), the Lokulus, which is based on Archimedes' Stomachion puzzle. If you know or have played the Tangram puzzle before, then you'll feel right at home with Shape by Shape. The idea and principle behind the puzzle is basically the same: build recognizable shapes with the puzzle's pieces. The challenge here, however, seems a little more complex than the Tangram, mainly because instead of seven pieces there's a total of 14 pieces you need to assemble into any given shape.

The game consists of six red and eight yellow pieces. The high contrast between the two colors will ensure that any shape you build is clearly visible in the tray. Made with strong and durable plastic, the pieces are thick and very easy to handle. You can turn and flip any piece the way you want, as long as it lies flat on the game tray. To solve any shape, all the pieces must be used and the resulting image has to be a perfect match of its counterpart in the challenge card.

With 60 different shapes to try and solve, there's a lot of building to do before you get tired of the game. Unlike other logic games, the cards are not separated by levels of difficulty. Without a clear indication of difficulty, any challenge can be considered easier or harder than the previous one. The challenge of the game lies in combining the two groups of pieces, yellow and red, in the tray. It's essentially a 2-in-1 game, because you have to build the shape with the red pieces, and then the yellow ones have to be placed as well to complete the picture.

You can build the shape first and work around it by placing the remaining yellow pieces, or you can do a mixture of both, placing red and yellow pieces alternately. I found it easier to just build the shape first, like a Tangram puzzle. Each challenge has more than one solution, so you can always try to find alternative arrangements for the pieces.

Closing Comments:

Shape by Shape is a great puzzle for any Tangram aficionado. Like its older cousin, the possibilities are virtually endless, so you can also try to build your own shapes. I still prefer the Lokulus game, but this one comes very close.

Availability: You can get the Shape by Shape game at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com for €16.95. You can also find there other games by ThinkFun.

Links:

ThinkFun's Official Website

Laser Maze, by ThinkFun, has captivated my curiosity ever since I first saw it, a couple of years ago. It's easy to get me excited about any type of logic games, but by adding lasers, my interest has increased even more. Now, I have finally got a copy, and it has far exceeded my expectations so far.

Invented by Luke Hooper, the concept of the Laser Maze isn't entirely new to me. I remember playing with something similar on the PC several years ago, which consisted of bending light with mirrors. There's also an interesting iPhone game called Reflection Connection that uses the same principles. Nevertheless, playing with the real thing is much more fascinating. Without going into any inaccurate facts, I believe this is the first electronic logic-game (multi-challenge), but if it's not, I will say that this is the best one I've ever played with...

I was actually surprised when I first heard about the Laser Maze. I thought, "how can they commercialize a toy with lasers?", "is it safe for kids?" - Well, as it turns out the laser can't harm your eyes or skin, under normal circumstances, because it's a class 1 laser - Not enough power to do any damage, whatsoever. Any kid aged 8-99 can safely play with Laser Maze without worrying about safety precautions.

The game comes packed with all sorts of cool light-manipulating objects: a laser, mirrors, beam splitters, a double-mirror , the works... To get you started, a collection of 60 challenge cards is included, divided in four difficulty levels, from beginner to expert (15 per level), but even after you run out of challenges to solve, you can try to create your own ever-more-complex light-bending displays.

I'll be honest. Understanding how the game works and interpreting the symbols in the challenge cards can be a little discouraging and frustrating at first. I suggest you read the instructions that come with the game and start with the first challenges, so you can familiarize yourself with the concept. After doing that, I was breezing past the first difficult level. It gets harder as you progress, but not immediately, so you can proceed at your own pace.

The goal of the game is to place the tokens as indicated on the chosen challenge card. Each card will tell you how many tokens and targets you're supposed to add to the game grid. This is where it becomes tricky at first: to determine which tokens to use, where to place them and figure out their orientation, which is sometimes undisclosed. When you think you have all worked out, just activate the laser and see if all your targets are light up. If not, you need to make some adjustments in their placement or their orientations. Note that you can only see the laser when it hits one of its targets, and never its path, as it's suggested on the game's package photo. But you already knew that if you know how lasers work, right? Anytime you get stumped in one of the challenges, you can always flip the card and see its solution.

The game works like any other type of light were to be used. The mirrors and double-mirrors will bend the light in a 90º angle, although the beam splitters have a really cool effect where one beam is split in two: one is bent like any other regular mirror and the other goes straight through it in the same direction that hit it. The checkpoint is simply a transparent piece of glass that lets the light go in a straight line.

Closing Comments:

Playing with lasers has never been more fun! The Laser Maze game has easily climbed to the top 3 of my favorite logic games of all time. It's one of the absolute best games by ThinkFun, and it shouldn't come as a surprise that it has won the Best Toy Award by the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio. If you're remotely interested in logic games and/or lasers, you should definitely give this one a try.

Availability: I got the Laser Maze from the Spanish online puzzle store PuzzlesdeIngenio.com. Worldwide shipping available. You can also browse other games by ThinkFun.

Links:

ThinkFun's Official Website

Laser Maze Online Version

The Fifteen Puzzle is, to this day, one of the most recognizable puzzles of all time. With its origins dating back to 1880, the original designer is still a topic of debate, although many say it was invented by Sam Loyd, one of the greatest American puzzle inventors.

The version you see in the photo, by ThinkFun, is actually a remake of an old puzzle called "The IMP" from 1933. Made from stainless steel and decorated with enamel (melted powdered glass), the puzzle keeps the original design intact and true to its origins. The result is a retro-looking puzzle, and due to its small size (6cm - 2.3") it's perfect to take with you on long travels. It comes with a travel case and an instruction booklet with over 30 challenges to solve.

The sliding movement of the tiles, contrary to what's advertised on the package, is not very smooth. In fact, the small sliding squares keep getting jammed and stuck all the time with each other, which is a little frustrating and distracting, when you're trying to solve a specific pattern, needing to concentrate and try not to lose your train of thought.

Despite the fact that it was a bit difficult to move the sliding tiles, it didn't deter me from solving several challenges that came with the puzzle. I love sliding puzzles, and whenever I get the chance to play with one, it's always a pleasure. The challenges vary slightly from one another, with variations in order of sequence from top or bottom, etc... They don't differ much in terms of difficulty, though.

If you know how to solve a classic sliding puzzle - whether it's a 9 or a 15 puzzle or any other combination - you won't have much trouble to solve any of the 30+ challenges available to you. It's the first time I've seen such challenges compiled for a sliding puzzle, actually, so I had a blast solving many different patterns and sequences.

Closing Comments:

The Fifteen Puzzle is the real deal when it comes to sliding puzzles and a classic in its own merit, which was responsible for so many other variations you see today, with images and symbols and many other designs. If you want the original with a touch of modernity, the ThinkFun version is the way to go.

Availability: The Fifteen Puzzle is available at PuzzleMaster for just $16 CAD. You can also get a comprehensive study on the puzzle by purchasing the book by Jerry Slocum - The Fifteen Puzzle Book.

Links:

More info on the Fifteen Puzzle and its History

Who doesn't remember playing Sokoban on the computer way back when? I remember playing countless levels and never get bored. The concept was very creative and made the game extremely addictive. Because I have so many fond memories of the game, I couldn't resist in getting a copy of ThinkFun's Treasure Quest, and finally play the game for real with physical tokens instead of virtual ones.

The game was designed by Harry Nelson - I don't want to say 'invented' because the concept already existed - and the 40 included challenges were created by Serhiy Grabarchuk Jr., Hiroshi Yamamoto and also the designer himself. The game isn't an exact replica of Sokoban, so there's merit of the designer in creating something different while still honoring the original.

The theme for one, is different between the two games. While the Sokoban had you reorganizing and replacing crates in different spots, in a warehouse setting, the Treasure Quest puts you in the shoes of an Indiana Jones-type character where the goal is to collect gold masks. In the Sokoban game, the crates never left the game area - the goal was to simply replace them neatly together in another part of the 'warehouse'. On the Treasure Quest, you not only have to remove the gold masks from the game board - using only one exit - but you need to worry about another rule, the arrow tokens. The arrow tokens can only be moved in the direction they're pointing, so you need to think twice about your moves before executing them. Another interesting difference between the two games is the layout. On the Sokoban, every puzzle had basically a different layout, but the Treasure Quest uses the same 7x7 game grid. Only the arrangement of the tokens change from puzzle to puzzle.

There are a few other things to keep in mind while you attempt to solve any of the 40 challenges: You can't jump over other tokens; Your character can only slide around a token and move one at a time; The green blocking tokens cannot be moved; If a gold mask gets stuck in a corner you're the one getting stuck and you need to reset the game board and start again.

The difficulty of the game slowly progresses through the four different levels, from Beginner to Expert, but even the Expert levels aren't that challenging, perhaps because I already knew the concept, but some of them can take a few minutes to figure out, and I needed to reset the board a few times. Thinking a few moves ahead will prevent a lot of resets, though.

Closing Comments:

The Treasure Quest is a great puzzle game, especially if you were (or still are) a fan of Sokoban-style games. My only gripe with it is the small number of available challenges, only 40. The Sokoban had hundreds of them. Unfortunately, this is not an exclusive problem of the game, but actually by ThinkFun themselves, since most of their multiple-challenge games suffer from the same problem. It wouldn't be asking much for at least 100 challenges included in each game.

Availability: You can get a copy of the Treasure Quest game at Sloyd for just €16.

Zig-Zag Knot is a very interesting interlocking puzzle designed by Ronald Kint-Bruynseels. If you played and solved the Gordian's Knot by ThinkFun, then you'll have no trouble tackling this newer variation, which is in my opinion a bit easier than its predecessor.

The Zig-Zag Knot is also comprised of six interlocked pieces, but the design is different enough to provide a new experience. For example, the Gordian's Knot has a configuration that lets you see much better how the pieces interact with each other. In the Zig-Zag Knot, the pieces are tightly connected and it's much harder to see what's going on inside. The color scheme is also a bit different, but the idea remains the same, each piece has a different color. The goal is to slide the pieces in any direction and find the correct sequence of movements to free them all. There's only one way to do this and a million wrong ways. Can you find the right way?

I always found interlocking puzzles a bit intimidating. Not because they're hard to take apart, but because most of the times they're much harder to put back together. I remember solving the Gordian's Knot a few years ago, and how difficult it was to solve and reassemble it, so it's understandable I was a bit apprehensive to try this newer version.

To my surprise, the puzzle was actually easier to solve than I was expecting. There are a few reasons that might easily explain this, but ultimately, I found it even more fun and less frustrating than the Gordian's Knot. One of the main reasons for the easiness of the Zig-Zag Knot compared to the older version is the number of necessary moves to completely solve it. The Gordian's Knot needs a minimum of 69 moves, whereas the Zig-Zag Knot needs only about half of them. 37 to be more precise. Although you can't see much inside the puzzle, the difficulty level is still lower. Another reason could simply be that I'm much better now at solving puzzles than I was a few years ago. Either way, I strongly believe the Zig-Zag Knot is much easier to solve.

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The Zig-Zag Knot is a much bigger improvement over its predecessor. The design is more attractive and elegant, but the real important factor is that it's much more fun to play with. Even if you're not experienced at solving puzzles like these, I'm sure you'll love it.

Availability: You can find the Zig-Zag Knot at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com. Worldwide shipping available.

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ThinkFun's version of Square Fit was made for their a-ha! series, which consists of several challenging puzzles for the more experienced puzzler. The original was made from wood, but following ThinkFun's tradition, you're presented with a beautiful design with bright colors and, like the others, in a small size, which is perfect to take with you on your long travels.

What strikes me as most fascinating in the puzzle is its simplicity and apparent easiness. Comprised of four identical pieces, Square Fit only needs you to place those pieces in the tray. There's a catch, though. Both the pieces and the tray are irregularly shaped, with each piece side having a different sized quadrilateral. Even with only four pieces, there are many wrong arrangements and only one is correct. Finding it won't be a walk in the park.

Solving the puzzle was quite difficult, but still not overly frustrating. I didn't have any particular strategy, so trial and error as I was examining the pieces was my only option. I did notice that as you place each piece in the tray, there's a position in with the piece fits exactly with the contours of the tray. You can take this as a sign that you're in the right path, so you just need to find where each piece belongs. Once you accomplish that you still need to insert all the pieces at the same time in the tray, due to their irregular shapes. When you solve it, you can try to remove just one piece and see it for yourself. It's just not possible. You also need to remove all four of them at the same time.

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Bill Cutler's Square Fit is indeed a fantastic puzzle. It has everything an enthusiast appreciates in a puzzle: a great design, deceptively challenging and fun to play with. And perhaps he's right. This might be his best puzzle ever.

Availability: ThinkFun's Square Fit is available at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com for just €6.90.

Straight Arrow is ThinkFun's version of an older puzzle, the Rectangular Jam, designed by Hirokazu Iwasawa and presented at the 25th IPP Design Competition in 2005, which ended up winning the Honorable Mention award.

The original version was made from wood, but ThinkFun, as usual in their puzzles, made it using bright colors and plastic. The end result is arguable, depending on your taste, but the essence of the puzzle remains the same - A fantastic puzzle. Straight Arrow belongs to ThinkFun's a-ha! series, which present several challenging puzzles at quite an affordable price. They're quite small, but don't judge them by their size. These will make you think.

The goal of the puzzle is simple: There are three identical planks and a green arrow. The starting position shows all rectangular pieces perpendicular to the exit. All you need to do is to find the correct sequence of moves, without removing or lifting the red pieces, and be able to slide the green arrow out of the tray. Only a few moves are necessary, but they're not at all intuitive, so you're gonna need to think outside the box to solve this one.

Before you even move any piece you should already have an idea of what you're supposed to do. If the pieces are arranged in a different orientation from the one you need, then all or some of the pieces should be rearranged to accommodate the desired orientation for the green arrow. How you'll be doing that is a whole other matter, and I won't spoil the solution for you. When you finally discover the solution you'll definitely have an "a-ha" moment. This is classified as a level 3/4, and I reckon is pretty accurate. It took me about 10 minutes to solve.

Closing Comments:

ThinkFun's Straight Arrow is a very creative challenge for anyone. It's not too difficult, but nonetheless challenging and rewarding once solved. It's also worth taking a look at other puzzles in the a-ha! series.

Availability: You can get a copy of the Straight Arrow puzzle at PuzzlesdeIngenio.com. Worldwide shipping available.

ThinkFun always seems to surprise us with their imaginative and creative designs. In a puzzle market filled with so many different concepts it's becoming ever more difficult coming up with fresh ideas. For ThinkFun, at least for now, that's not a problem. The game was developed by Mark Engelberg (game rules) and Serhiy Grabarchuk Jr. (game challenges).

Chocolate Fix is unlike any other logic game. It's not as easy to understand at first, but once you get to know it it'll become extremely addicting. The idea behind the game is reminiscent of Sudoku, since you use the same logical deduction to solve each puzzle, and as you place more objects in the game grid it gets progressively easier.

Chocolate Fix is also a bit different from other logic games. To solve each puzzle you have study many clues and figure out where to place all nine chocolate pieces. You need to be constantly looking to the challenge card, unlike many other games where you set the puzzle using a challenge card and concentrate only on the tray afterwards. It's much more demanding, but also much more interesting. I guess part of the reason I liked this game so much is because I used to be hooked on Sudoku puzzles and see a correlation between the two.

So what does the game consist of? You are given nine distinct chocolate pieces in three different colors and shapes. The game grid is 3x3 and all spots need to occupied for a puzzle to be solved. Unlike Sudoku, the idea doesn't have anything to do with avoiding repetition. You can have identical colors or shapes adjacent to each other or on the same column or row. The goal is just to find the correct pattern as given by the clues. The clues will vary depending on the difficulty level. They could point to a color, a shape, both, or even part of the grid, which usually doesn't tell you exactly where it is.

There are a total of 40 challenges divided in four different levels of difficulty. The beginner challenges are quite easy to get you started, but the fun starts where you reach the intermediate level, and by the time you get to expert you'll see they're as tough as any challenging Sudoku puzzle. On the later challenges, I sometimes had to take a chance and see if it some pattern worked like I thought, because the clues didn't seem enough to have a concrete answer. If I was wrong, then it should be the other way around. It's a great feeling when you're finally able to complete a tough challenge.

Closing Comments:

Chocolate Fix is not an ordinary game. Using a different kind of logic to solve the puzzles it provides a different exercise for the brain, unlike all the others in the ThinkFun range. It's a great game for everyone, puzzler or not. Good luck holding out on your "chocolate fix" after playing with this one...

Availability: You can get a copy of the Chocolate Fix game at Sloyd for €19.66.

Turnstile is a rather unusual logic game from ThinkFun. The presentation is very elegant and colorful, but can be a bit confusing to understand. As you go through the included 40 challenges, the difficulty level increases and some of them can be quite tricky to solve, putting your wits to the test.

The game was invented by Steve Hayton and ThinkFun started production in 2011. Like many of ThinkFun's logic games, there's something about this one that makes it quite addicting. The idea of going through all challenges seems like an arduous task, but as soon as you understand the concept, you'll solve them in no time.

Turnstile can be described as a dynamic maze. In other words, as you try and solve one of the challenges you'll make changes to the overall appearance of that particular maze. You need to be thinking two or three steps ahead, as a misstep in the wrong direction could mean starting all over.

The main goal is to get all four colored tokens to their respective corners, although some challenges, particularly in the easier levels, only require the use of one or two colored tokens. Blocking your way are turnstiles that constantly create new paths as you pass through them. To make your task a little more interesting you also have to worry about the gray tokens that can actually be used in your favor, to open new paths.

You start by picking a challenge from the deck. If you're unfamiliar with the puzzle you can start by the easier ones and go through the four different difficulty levels. After setting the game grid you can now move the tokens through the maze and get them to their correct spaces.

There are a few rules you need to be aware of. You can only push the turnstiles, one quarter of a turn, with a token. You move the tokens one at a time, in any direction except on the diagonal, and always to an adjacent space. If there's a token or other turnstile blocking your way it means the correct path must be through somewhere else. Just keep practicing and you'll eventually find the correct way to solve it.

Difficulty-wise, Turnstile can be pretty challenging, especially the last ones due to the large number of required moves, which also increases your chances of doing something wrong. This is not the easiest game to understand at first, and you may need some time getting used to it.

Closing Comments:

Turnstile turned out to be a great surprise. I wasn't expecting much out of it, but found it to be quite fun and entertaining, and most importantly, addicting. If you like this sort of logic games I'm sure you'll love Turnstile.

Availability: Turnstile is available at Sloyd for €25.20.

Are you a big fan of the classic Rush Hour by ThinkFun? If your answer is yes, then the Roadside Rescue is perfect for you. The theme is simple: you're stuck on a highway jam and you have to make way for the emergency vehicles to get on the rescue site. It's a very original sliding block puzzle, invented by Hank Atkins and challenges developed by Serhiy Grabarchuk.

The puzzle consists of 12 vehicles, including the three emergency ones that will serve as the main tokens. There are also six blockers that can be placed in the tray and these will not be movable, they're just there to limit your movements. The frame is a 3x5 grid, so it's not your typical sliding puzzle, but the solving process is pretty much the same. At the start of each challenge you'll always have only one empty space to move your tokens, and even though sometimes it appears there are more empty spaces, the blockers ensure you will not be using them.

The tokens aren't all the same and you'll soon notice this as you try to solve your first challenges. Some of the vehicles are neatly placed at the middle of the token base, but these are the simpler ones. You'll also see a few vehicles that overhang the front or back of the token bases and even front and back, like the Fire Truck. The different sizes of tokens will add a higher complexity level to the challenges, as you'll sometimes be limited to only one valid move, instead of multiple path choices.

There are 42 challenges - Odd number, might as well been 50 - and they start quite simple, but soon it gets rather complex. The first set of challenges rotates between one of the emergency vehicles, but as you progress you'll start seeing combinations of two and then all three special vehicles in the same challenge. You play a specific challenge by sliding the pieces in the four main directions until the emergency vehicles are on their designated positions. It won't suffice to just have them reach the right side of the tray.

I haven't solved all 42 challenges, but I did enough of them, even the harder ones, to have a good grasp of the difficulty level. All I can say is that they're not at all difficult, even when you're using all three special vehicles. If you're good at sliding puzzles, Roadside Rescue won't cause you much frustration, but it can still be fun to play through all of the challenges.

Closing Comments:

I still think Rush Hour is the best ThinkFun puzzle game, but after playing with Roadside Rescue I reckon they're pretty close in terms of fun factor. As for difficulty, I also consider Rush Hour to be much more challenging, but here it's just a question of personal preference, whether you're more inclined for harder puzzles or more accessible ones. The design is quite clever and while I've played with lots of different sliding puzzles before, it's the first time I've seen this concept. Definitely recommended for puzzle fans of all skills.

Availability: You can get a copy of Roadside Rescue at Sloyd.fi. You can also take a look at other puzzles by ThinkFun here. For the Deal of the Week, you can get a 15% discount on ALL ThinkFun puzzles by just mentioning the name of my blog. Offer valid until November 15.

Challenges: