The Revomaze

I was wandering around downtown Seattle on Aug 14 and wandered into a store called Marbles: The Brain Store. With a name like that, you know I couldn't not walk in. During a brief lull in business a salesperson asked me what I was looking for and I said that I enjoy puzzles. So, he led me right over to three called the Revomaze. The salesperson explained that they are called the world's most challenging puzzle or something like that. Hook, line, and sinker -- he had me.

The three (blue, bronze, and silver) were described to me as "easy, medium, and hard." They were all out of the "easy" blue one, so he tried to sell me on the medium version, with plenty of compliments about how smart I looked. I explained that I'm dumber than I look and really wanted to start with the easy one. So, I ordered one online via the store computer. On Aug 24 it arrived in the mail.

Let me just say that whoever created this thing is a sadist. Somebody who knows exactly how to get under the skin of people like me, and stay there a long time. One week later and I'm still working on it. This despite reviews saying it takes the average person 8-16 hours. Okay -- I'm a doofus -- I admit it. Counting only puzzle time, I'm sure I am well over the 16 hour limit. No wonder I failed the MENSA test.

Let me report on my progress. The second link below says, "There's one spot in the puzzle that gets everyone, leaving many saying 'There's no way to progress. My puzzle is broken'. As we have all found out, there is a way, the challenge is in finding it." I think I've made it past this part. I was stuck on it for days. However, just because you pass it doesn't mean the puzzle is over. I still have not arrived at the end, but believe I'm close. Like many times before, I seem to be at a place where every direction leads to a trap, but eventually you find a way to move forward.

I'll keep you posted with my progress. I think I accomplished a lot today.

Links:

Meet one of the world's most fiendishly difficult puzzles
Revomaze Blue Extreme. This review says the estimated solve time is six hours. Now I REALLY feel like an idiot.
Revomaze – Blue Extreme. This title has a dash in it, as opposed to the second link.



p.s. I wasn't sure whether I should post this in the "I love" or "I hate" category.

I would have grabbed it and smashed it
onto the floor of the store and fled.
But that's just me..

Quote: Evenbob

But that's just me..

That's just Alexander the Great

give it to a six year old and get out your stop watch.

Quote: Wizard

... So, he led me right over to three called the Revomaze.

I got a "404" dead link message.

$200 for a puzzle is pretty extreme. It looks great though.

I think "Puzzle" derives from an Ancient Sumerian expression meaning more or less "Take a big hammer and smash the offending objects into bits. Then burn the bits with incense as an offering to Marduk, may he restore your sanity."

Quote: Ayecarumba

I got a "404" dead link message.

$200 for a puzzle is pretty extreme. It looks great though.

Just fixed it. Try this link. Yeah, $200 is by far the most I've ever paid for a puzzle. However, the quality is outstanding and it also looks very nice.

Quote:

I think "Puzzle" derives from an Ancient Sumerian expression meaning more or less "Take a big hammer and smash the offending objects into bits. Then burn the bits with incense as an offering to Marduk, may he restore your sanity."

The other readers may appreciate that the word for puzzle in Spanish is rompecabeza, which means broken head.

Quote: Wizard

The other readers may appreciate that the word for puzzle in Spanish is rompecabeza, which means broken head.

I'm afraid I'm adding 20 push-ups to your bill:

10 because rompecabezaS means "head-breaker." "Broken head" would be "cabeza rota."

10 more because it's not a generic word for "puzzle," but rather a specific word for "jigsaw puzzle." As seen here: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rompecabezas.

There is no Spanish equivalent for "puzzle," actually. In English the term applies to that thing you posted, a jigsaw puzzle, a crossword, Sudoku, a Rubik's cube, etc. Maybe that's why Mexican papers almost always lack a puzzles page, though some still stick a crossword in the classifieds. There are no funny pages either.

I'm still suffering from the last time you, ahem, recommended a puzzle: 2048!

So I'll pass...

I wouldn't mind trying one, but I believe I'll wait until the price drops.

I think you could 3d print a couple hundred in plastic for the same cost.