And yet another milestone is reached. Three and a half years later, I'm writing my 400th post on a blog that I never thought would be this popular. Fast approaching 300.000 page views, I reckon it's safe to assume someone must read this thing. With the added responsibility of writing something worth reading, my choice of puzzles to review becomes a little harder, but I'm rewarded with the occasional treasure. These treasures are what I like to call my top 10 from the last 100, a small list of puzzles I consider must-haves in any respectable collection. Read on, as I start the countdown from number 10. You can also click on their names for the full review and where to buy them.

10 - Die Welle

I start with my favorite puzzle designer, Jean Claude Constantin. With over 50 reviews on my blog so far, it's hard not to include at least one or two in the top. Die Welle has a very elegant design, it's a sequential movement puzzle, more specifically a quinary or 5-ary, and the goal is to move all three balls from the right to the left. Concentration and patience are required as you try and solve one of the best-looking sequential puzzles out there with an unconventional curved design over the more traditional right angled puzzles.

9 - Twistball

Dubbed the round Rainbow Cube, the Twistball concept was designed by Josip Matijek in 1989, even though it was only launched a couple of years ago. The puzzle is well built and the movement is smooth, but the painted tiles aren't perfect, leaving  sometimes a smudgy patch of paint. With 13 different Twistballs commercially available, ranging from easy to extreme difficulty, and a promise of more to come it's easy to understand why this Twisty puzzle has been so popular.

8 - Anti-Virus

Oskar's contribution to SmartGames portfolio is one of the best designs in puzzle games since Rush Hour. Probably not a coincidence, Anti-Virus has a somewhat similar concept to its older cousin. With nine colored pieces and two blockers (static tokens), your task is to get rid of the virus, the red piece, by sliding pieces along the board until you free a path to the exit point. I found the Anti-Virus a little harder than Rush Hour, mainly because the movement of the pieces is done diagonally which is less intuitive. A very colorful puzzle game with 60 challenges that will sure put your skills to the test.

7 - Ball in Cylinder

When Jerry Loo, a fellow puzzle blogger, launched his first ever puzzle design I was quite excited about it. After all, we bloggers weren't on the other side of the fence anymore. His concept? A very clever hidden mechanism inside an aluminum cylinder, simply called Ball in Cylinder No.1, where the objective is to remove a metal sphere. The puzzle was so well designed I couldn't ever thought it was coming from a newbie. Judging by the great craftsmanship that went into the building of Cylinder No.1, I can only expect great things from its successor.

6 - Escape From Alcatraz

Every year at the International Puzzle Party, Robrecht Louage  presents us with yet another great design. Over the last few years his contributions consisted of a very simple concept: a maze, a coin and some other features that it's best not to divulge. The goal is always the same, remove the coin, but what strikes me is that each year he comes up with a design seemingly better than its predecessor. This year's puzzle was the Escape from Alcatraz, and the design alone is very original, but no matter how many of his puzzles you solve, he always has some way of surprising you and this one is no different.

5 - Burgh Lock

Splinter Spierenburgh is another talented puzzle designer that surprised me last year with his first design, the MazeRoll, also featured in the last IPP. I loved that puzzle so much that I had high hopes for its successor. Fortunately, Splinter delivered yet another piece of genius, the Burgh Lock. This is among the best Trick Locks I've tried so far and knowing that it's the first time Splinter has tried to build one of these it makes it even more special. It's also the first Trick Lock made from 3D printing I've ever come across with.

4 - Safe

Over the past year I've been quite obsessed with Siebenstein-Spiele for their magnificent craftsmanship and gorgeous puzzle designs. Similar in style to what you know from Jean Claude Constantin it's easy to fall in love with their puzzles too. The best-looking one I currently have in my collection is the Safe, a superbly designed puzzle by Jürgen Reiche reminiscent of a measure instrument from centuries past. The puzzle features a double maze with rotating discs and a trapped coin. The object is to simply remove the coin, but the puzzle itself is very challenging. An excellent puzzle for the more experienced puzzler.

3 - Cast Harmony

Designed by a Russian duo, Dmitry Pevnitskiy and Kirill Grebnev, the Cast Harmony is one of the most beautiful puzzles ever released by Hanayama. The puzzle was first introduced in the 30th IPP and even won two awards that year, the Puzzlers' Award and the Jury First Prize. The goal is to separate both pieces and that's not even hard to accomplish, but the design speaks for itself. Puzzle design is an art and the Cast Harmony proves it.

2 - Roundominoes

I'm a sucker for puzzles that offer you plenty of challenges and different ways to play with them. The Roundominoes, designed by Kate Jones and produced by Puzumi Puzzles, is a perfect example of best value for money, as it comes with a 15-page booklet full of challenges for you to solve, including a few 2-player games. Made from 28 laser-cut acrylic pieces and seven vibrant colors it's very easy to get absorbed into this mesmerizing design and its addicting challenges. A true puzzler's dream.

1 - Modern Times

Despite being my favorite puzzle designer, it's actually the first time one of Constantin's designs made it into number 1 in my top 10's. It just shows you how unique this puzzle is. I guess you could say it was love at first sight, since I was instantly drawn to it when I first saw it. All those gears and the different wood colors combine in a perfect way to make it one of the most stunning puzzles I currently own in my collection. The goal is to have all touching colors in the four main gears match. Once mixed up, it's actually a very tough puzzle to solve, but it's pure fun and joy to play with it. Absolutely recommended for anyone slightly interested in puzzles.

Closing Comments:

There you have it. 10 perfect gift ideas for the coming holidays. As always, for me, it's great to look back and see another 100 posts published, see the blog growing in numbers, see the comments in the reviews and getting feedback from you. Here's to another 100, and next time it's gonna be special with my 500th post. Stay tuned for more and thank you for reading.

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Looks like I've reached yet another milestone with my blog, this time for the 300th post, almost three years after I started. It could've been reached a lot sooner, although it's hard to maintain a steady pacing of five reviews a week, like I did to get to post 200. I did manage to keep an average of two reviews a week, sometimes three, mostly thanks to Tomas Lindén from Sloyd (Oy Sloyd Ab) and Leon Stein from PuzzleMaster, who have been the two biggest sponsors of the blog.

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The following is a top 10 from my last 100 puzzle reviews. I have done a similar thing for the first 100, which can be accessed here. So, to avoid confusion, this is not a top for the 200 reviews, just the last 100. A comprehensive all-around top 10 will be done when I hopefully reach the 1000th review.

Each puzzle is only briefly described. For a detailed review and availability information, click on the link for the specific entry.

10 - DBox

Essentially a construction set similar to Livecube, the DBox was invented by Boaz Leicht. 32 unit cubes in two colors, blue and yellow make use of a stable connection allowing to build and solve countless 3x3x3 cubic puzzles and many other 2D ones as well. Building patterns and playing multiplayer games are some of the other possibilities for the DBox. A very cost-effective tool that easily puts at your disposal thousands of puzzles, saving you a lot of money in the process. The $25 per set might deter some people from buying multiple sets for more complex structures, though.

9 - Culica

Invented by the British James Eadon, the Culica is a very versatile puzzle/game with a great potential to become a worldwide success. A cube with 54 slots and 84 pegs in four colors is all you need to play its already large variety of logic puzzles and multiplayer games found at their website. Updated often with new puzzles and games, it will be hard to become tired of it, and on top of that you can also create your own games.

8 - Wine Lovers Puzzle


7 - Solitaire Chess


Created by the talented Finnish puzzle inventor Vesa Timonen, the Solitaire Chess is a brilliant adaptation of the traditional chess game. With a simplified 4x4 board, ten actual chess pieces and playing with the same rules, your task is to pick one of the game's 60 challenges divided in four difficulty levels, set up the board with the correct pieces and solve it until you're left with just one piece. The main requirement is that each move you make has to result in a piece being captured, otherwise you have to start over. A wonderful logic puzzle that can be absolutely addictive. A must-have for any chess player.

6 - All Five

A stunningly beautiful puzzle invented by Wayne Daniel, the All Five is a wonderful mathematical achievement. Comprised by 37 pieces, its name comes from the fact that it's actually a 5-in-1 puzzle representing the 5 Platonic solids. The solids have a harmonious relationship with each other, all nesting inside a progressively smaller one, sort of like a Matryoshka doll. The puzzle itself is not crazy difficult, but there are a couple of puzzles that do require a little more effort and skill to assemble.

5 - Phil Exley's 3D Puzzles


Phil Exley's 3D Puzzles were one of my biggest findings last year. Reviewed in January this year, these puzzles are designed and crafted by him at his shop in the Algarve, Portugal. A bit on the small size, the superb design is totally worth it, however. His puzzles vary in level difficulty, which can go from 4 to 64 pieces. The complex designs are carved by hand, no laser-cutting, which makes for a more authentic and unique piece of art. For creating his own line of original puzzles, Phil deserves all the credit from the puzzle community. A true craftsman.

4 - Breadbox

David Litwin is a renowned inventor who is most notable for his twisty puzzle creations and his line of Elemental puzzles. Surprising the puzzle community with his latest design and concept by Bram Cohen, the Breadbox, David takes his first steps in the 2D packing puzzles with one of my favorite puzzles in the category. Focused in the theme of bread, the puzzle has 17 pieces in three sizes. Depicting two loaves of bread and a bread crumb, there are two challenges to solve. One is getting all two loaves to fit tightly in the frame; the other, harder, is to add the bread crumb. The frame is made from Maple, the large pieces from Cherry and the smaller ones from Walnut. The Breadbox was David's exchange puzzle at the 31st IPP.

3 - Trifolia


A wonderful work of art by Kate Jones, Trifolia is one of my latest favorite puzzles. Published by Kadon Enterprises, the acrylic puzzle is a set of 24 laser-cut tiles with all possible combinations of four edge types. It comes in a beautiful, also acrylic, black tray and two contrasting colors for the pieces: opaque red and white. Included with the puzzle is a comprehensive booklet with all types of challenges that you can solve with the set, as well as a few multiplayer games. Trifolia is not just a feast to the eyes, due to the mesmerizing shapes of the pieces, but it's also a fantastic puzzle with countless challenges to attempt that'll keep you busy for months to come. One of Kate's best work.

2 - Quadratum Cubicum


Quadratum Cubicum is a collection of several mathematicians' square trisection puzzles. The nine puzzles, with a total of 68 pieces made from plexiglass, range from six to nine pieces and can be combined to form 27, 9, 3 or 1 big square. It comes in a stylish beautiful wooden box with a pin lock and it was Christian Blanvillain entry at the 31st IPP. A treasure to any math wiz or packing puzzle fan, the Quadratum Cubicum is a must-have in any puzzle collection.

1 - Truzzle


... And we reach number 1 in my countdown of the best puzzles of the last 100 reviews. Truzzle, a curious name for a puzzle, right? Invented by Frank Paris from France, Truzzle is actually a line of edge-matching puzzles with a wonderful originality. Several patterns of waves cut from a selection of 16 types of wood make a wide variety of puzzles in two available sizes. The one in the image is a Spriral Motif with Multicolored Cubes (Big size). Choosing from a pattern of cubes or stripes, the Truzzle you end up buying will be a true masterpiece like no other. With a perfect balance and harmony between a puzzle and a decorative object, the Truzzle is the ultimate gift for a puzzle lover.

I have also made two animated motion videos for the Truzzle. Check them out: Video 1/Video 2.

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With these 10 puzzles, my collection is certainly much richer than before. I am looking very much forward to the 300th post and to see which new puzzles make it into the top 10.

What about you? Which changes would you make to the top? Any of my reviews that you think would've deserved to be in this top too? Leave your thoughts in the comments section of this post. Looking forward to your feedback.

A big Thank You to all the readers of the blog and for helping making it what it is today. I hope you continue to visit for more puzzle reviews.

This was one of my first Cast Puzzles. At the time, it was the one that caught my attention the most and still today, after having almost 30 of them, is my favorite. What I like most is the appearance of it, the N E W S font is absolutely superb and the golden color gives it an ancient look. This is what Hanayama does best - It takes an otherwise boring puzzle and turns it into an amazing work of art... Even the packaging looks good.

As most of Hanayama's puzzles, the goal of the Cast News is to separate both pieces. This is a level 6 puzzle, the highest and can be a real tough challenge for a beginner.

9 - White DOTS

The White DOTS is an invention of Pantazis Houlis from Greece. His line of gravity puzzles are some of the most original puzzles you can have the pleasure to play. This particular one has many challenges you can do, from beginner to advanced.

Without touching the actual pieces inside, you have to tilt the ball in order to flip the 5 pyramids and solve a specific puzzle. There's a free space between the pyramids and this allows them to flip and turn inside the ball. It's a joy to play with it. The White DOTS has been re-branded and is now called Oginov.

8 - Bolaris

Coming all the way from Finland and designed by Hannu Hjerppe, the Bolaris are actually a collection of 4 puzzles, with each one having a different color scheme. The balls are essentially a 3D sliding puzzle where you scramble the pieces and try to get them to their original pattern.

The Bolaris Color is my favorite from the four, because it's not so difficult, but it sure provides a nice challenge without being too much frustrated. The Bolaris Globe, on the other hand, does look a lot better with the Earth representation, but it can be one hell of a headache to solve.

7 - Qubami

Custom built by Kelvin Stott from Switzerland, the Qubami is a fantastic 3x3 Rubik-type cube with a twist. Think of it like a 3D Sudoku. There's three different colors and three symbols, and you have to solve it so that there's no two of the same colors or symbols in any row or column on each of its six faces.

This is really hard to solve, but when you do, you really feel a good sense of accomplishment. What stands out most in this puzzle is its original look with bubble stickers and stylish color scheme. Definitely worth your time...

6 - Gear Cube

Designed by the genius of Oskar van Deventer, the Gear Cube was the first one in a new trend of twisty puzzles. There's been several new versions and sticker variations since its first release by Meffert's, but this one is still my favorite.

The gears that make the cube turn give a whole new dimension to this type of puzzle. Although it requires techniques to solve similar to the Rubik's Cube, it's still different in its own way and extremely fun to solve.

5 - Revomaze Obsession

We were first introduced to the Revomaze by Chris Pitt back in 2008. At the time they were only being made in metal and were very expensive. In order to get to a wider audience and to new puzzle enthusiasts, the Revomaze Obsession puzzles were launched two years later. By switching to plastic, the cost of production was considerably reduced and so the final price, although the overall quality of the puzzles remais very high.

For the ones who don't know, the Revomaze is a hidden maze puzzle and the goal is to remove the internal shaft from the sleeve by navigating through a complex maze. The first version of the Obsession doesn't actually allow the shaft to be removed after you solve it, but this issue has been fixed with the V2, now available at their website. New review on these ones coming soon...

4 - Svetnashki

The Svetnashki is like a classic 15-Puzzle, but with a very cool concept that gives it a new life. Built by the Russian company Mif Predmet, the Svetnashki makes a very clever use of polarized filters to change a clear tile into opaque when it passes in from of one. There's no unique goal though - You can turn all the tiles dark or clear, or you can just make your own designs.

There were six different versions released (the one in picture is the 4x4 Classic), and the company had plans to release even more, but since then no others have been produced which really is a shame. I still love to play with them from time to time, just for the fun of it... I recommend it to everyone that likes slide puzzles or something out of the ordinary.

3 - Bicone

Vinco, or Václav Obšivač is a fantastic craftsman. His designs are worthy to be in a puzzle museum. The Bicone was my first puzzle from him. Built from cherry and maple wood, it creates a rather beautiful checkered pattern. There are many different designs for this shape - Ten to be more precise. This particular one is called the Bicone 2 and the objective is to take apart the four interlocked pieces, but the process is not that simple.

The method used to solve it is coordinated-motions, but once you're familiar with it, it just takes the time to find where all the pieces are connected. To find more of his amazing puzzles, visit his website. His puzzles are handmade and have very limited quantities, so don't just wait to get the one you're looking for.

2 - Japanese Puzzle Box

One of the most sought after puzzles from enthusiasts all over the world are the Japanese Puzzle Boxes. They are built by the best craftsmen in Japan and are decorated with all these distinctive and intricate patterns. The puzzle itself is to find the correct sequence of sliding movements to open the box. The smaller ones are easier, but as you go higher in size and number of movements, it can get really difficult to open, with some of the hardest ones having hundreds of steps to solve.

The particular one in the picture is actually a 2-in-1. The main box is 2.5 Sun with 5 Steps and inside it, there's a smaller Mame box with 22 Steps to open. These ones, hopefully will be the first in many ahead, because I was completely amazed by their quality and the overall concept of the puzzle itself - to discover each correct movement to open them.

1 - Lexomino

... And we finally get to my absolute favorite of the puzzles reviewed so far, and actually my favorite from my entire collection, because it holds a certain sentimental value that it's hard to get from a regular mass-produced puzzle. Call me egocentric, but how many people have the privilege of having a puzzle custom-made just for themselves? It doesn't get any rarer than this, as this is the only one in the world.

The Lexomino puzzles were created by Eric Harshbarger from the United States and are built from acrylic and plywood for the box. It consists of packing all of the pieces inside the box and be able to close the lid. It's a bit different from what you're used to, like in a simple Assembly puzzle, because the pieces won't just fit into the box by stacking them over each other. They interlock in many different ways to save space, and this is where it gets difficult, since there's thousands of possibilities, but only a fraction of correct solutions, maybe one in some cases.

There's now a popular puzzle based on this concept, also by Eric, called Digits in a Box, but if you fancy one made with your name, you can contact the inventor and ask in more detail what you're looking for. Be warned though, not all letter configurations are solvable, so it has to be checked by Eric if it's doable.


Final Thoughts:

... And there you have it, my favorite 10 puzzles from all my reviews. Who knows what puzzles I might choose for the 200th post? - Maybe a completely different top, but it would be very hard to change my top three.

I hope my reviews are helping some of you to know new puzzles or to decide whether or not to buy the one you were looking for. If I succeeded in that job, then my work was totally worth it.

Finally, I just would like to thank Roxanne Wong, Rob Stegmann, Georges Helm and Pantazis Houlis, for they're  the ones responsible for me to start collecting all these extraordinary objects. They are more than just collectors, they have been contributing for years, with their work and knowledge and sharing their experiences with all the puzzle community, in one way or another. To them, I'm very grateful for that.