Questions tagged [puzzle-creation]
A question about the creation and development of puzzles. Not to be used for requesting the creation of a puzzle.
287 questions
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How do I construct longer cryptic clues without overly complicated parsings?
I dabble in cryptic-clues, especially as part of Puzzling SE's chat game. I believe I have a solid grasp of how to construct an acceptable clue: how indicators work, what makes a fair definition, etc. ...
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What defines whether a puzzle’s difficulty stems from logic depth versus search complexity?
In designing logical puzzles (example: grid-based deduction puzzles), difficulty can come from either logical dependencies or from search space. Is there a formal way to distinguish or measure these ...
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How are the word-searches made for mass-produced puzzle books?
This question is mostly a way to give @FumbleFingers somewhere to put their information about word-search grid making, but it's open to anyone with a referenced answer.
Word searches are one of the ...
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How are the crosswords made for mass-produced puzzle books?
At checkout counters, airport bookstores, and my grandparents' house are always a bunch of mass-produced puzzle books. These are small paper things that weigh nothing and will keep me cheaply ...
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Minimum number of clues for a Find-the-stars puzzle
Previously I posted collections of my Find-the-stars puzzles here, here and here.
This post is different.
You are asked to create a puzzle.
Find-the-stars rules:
A Find-the-stars puzzle is played on ...
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Puzzle Series: solve one to unlock the next [closed]
I've created a series of browser-based logic puzzles designed to be solved in sequence. Once you solve one puzzle correctly, you'll be automatically redirected to the next stage.
At the moment, there ...
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What is the smallest possible Block-party puzzle that can be created?
In a previous question, I gave an example of a Block-party puzzle.
For the purposes of this question, I will define a Block-party puzzle as follows:
The puzzle creator starts with an nxn grid and ...
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Is it fair to use the possessive as misdirection for a plural definition?
In a fair cryptic crossword clue the definition part must match the solution in tense and pluralisation.
Is it generally considered fair to use the possessive, 's, as misdirection for a plural ...
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Meaning of "wordplay from definition"
I recently posted my first attempt at a cryptic crossword. Among the helpful comments was one that said some of my clues used: wordplay from definition when it should be other way round.
Presumably ...
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Stories with hidden/subtle impossibilities or inconsistencies?
There is a certain kind of puzzle story, where the story is seemingly "normal" and perfectly believable, if not for one detail that can't be true (i.e. anachronism, or subtle physical ...
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Testing Puzzles for Feedback: Enigmatic Puzzles 3
I'm starting to test out puzzles for my second puzzle book (link to the first). They're all enigmatic word puzzles. Try out this new puzzle I'm testing and share any feedback you might have to make it ...
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Can TrackMania puzzles be abstracted into conrete, interesting puzzles?
I recently got back into the older TrackMania games, which have a gamemode called Puzzle. In this mode, players are given a limited amount of blocks (consisting of roads, ramps, etc.) to finish a ...
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Solid border Yin-Yang
Yin-Yang is a grid deduction puzzle with the following rules:
Fill each cell with either a black circle or a white circle.
All circles of a given color must form a single orthogonally-connected ...
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Is it possible to have a double miracle Sudoku grid?
I've been attempting to construct a miracle sudoku puzzle for a while now, with a little twist. Instead of one sudoku grid, there are two combined grids, as a new-ish idea. The grid I've been using to ...
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Looking for some words or phrases
I would like to find some words or short phrases that have the letter sequence E-I-E-I-O. For example:
_ E _ I E ... I _ ... _ ... _ O _ _ _ _
Ans: GENIE IN A BOTTLE
(ignore the ... dots)
I have tried ...
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