For most people, their first encounter with a mechanical puzzle consists of trial and error, for expert puzzlers, it takes lots of observation and strategic thinking before they will try their first move. In both cases, the more the players apply themselves, the deeper their understanding of the puzzle becomes. This learning process requires a lot of creativity and a mindset of "thinking outside the box".
It can be hard to find a puzzle that is very challenging and at the same time fun and enjoyable. I hope that this list of our top 10 most difficult puzzles for adults will be useful to those searching for very hard puzzles.
1. Super Cubi Japanese Wooden Puzzle Box
Can you imagine completing a puzzle in 324 perfect steps? This limited-edition wooden puzzle box will keep you busy for the next few months. This high-quality Super Cubi, wooden puzzle box is designed to be unlocked - but only if you can get all 324 steps correct. The wood moves smoothly and easily when you’re right, making it easy to know whether or not you’re on the right track. Designed by Akio Kamei.
2. The Grandfather Burr Puzzle
The Grandfather Burr 18-piece puzzle is the original 18 pieces burr puzzle (designed by W. L. van der Poel without the help of a computer program) which makes it a very challenging interlocking puzzle for adults out there. Like most burr puzzles, the goal of this puzzle is to reassemble the original shape. The Grandfather Burr Puzzle has 18 pieces, all with notches. The puzzle's design makes it extremely difficult because there are "holes" in the interior of the puzzle body,
3. Mission Impossible IQ Puzzle for Adults
As children, we start out trying to fix shapes into the right holes. The Mission Impossible puzzle takes that concept to the next level by creating a puzzle that involves fitting 25 identical Y-shaped blocks in a 5x5x5 cube. Since you’ll have to create several layers in order to fill the box and utilize every piece, you’ll need to break out your critical thinking skills to stay three steps ahead.
4. Generation Puzzle - 341,718,750 Moves
Looking for a puzzle that will last you for at least the next twenty years? This wooden lock puzzle for adults involves making over 3 million moves – yes, 3 million moves. As the name says, the minimum amount of moves you can make to unlock the puzzle is 341,718,750. There are eight metal pins that you’ll have to navigate through the puzzle maze by moving sliding wooden panels through.
5. 51 Piece Japanese Crystal Puzzle
First created in Japan during the 19th century, this puzzle is beautifully constructed out of 51 wooden pieces and consider as a difficult interlocking puzzle. The goal is to disassemble and assemble the perfectly symmetrical multifaceted celestial structure, this can be done by complete the correct sequence of actions of 50 pieces and then lock the shape with the last piece the “key piece”.
6. Double Gear Escape Room Puzzle Maze
With four mazes packed into a single puzzle, you’ll get hours of creative fun and critical thinking with the Double Gear puzzle. To solve the puzzle, you’ll have to solve the four maze combinations simultaneously in order to free the two metal balls that trapped in the maze. This level four puzzle can take over 8 hours to solve, making it a great way to pass time.
7. Sky Tower
Take critical thinking to the next level with the puzzling Sky Tower. While it may look easy at first - after all, there are only 10 pieces to build the tower - you’ll soon find that, without planning ahead, it’s nearly impossible. The goal of the Sky Tower is the fill in the tower with all 10 geometric shapes - 50 cubes! The catch? The puzzle has only one solution when you alternate between colors.
8. The Trap Puzzle
Think you can free the trapped ball in 11 moves? The Trap Puzzle will force you to utilize patience and create a careful strategy to free the ball without creating a tangled mess with the rope. The upright design of this puzzle makes it easy to store or leave out on your desk or coffee table as a decoration.
9. Tricky Drawer Burr Puzzle In A Box
The Tricky Drawer puzzle is a very challenging burr puzzle in a box frame. The 4 wooden pieces are designed to be notched rods, which make the puzzle extremely difficult to solve because of the "holes" created in the interior of the puzzle.
10. Alpha Puzzle Lock
An amazing escape room puzzle lock that requires no key to open! The Alpha Puzzle Lock features a very unique maze mechanism with three hidden wooden sliding panels that can only be moved horizontally while the metal balls can only be moved vertically in their slot. In order to solve the puzzle and open the lock, all three sliding panels must be navigated through their special maze.
Thinking outside of the puzzle box
Part of the fun of puzzling is the mental challenge it offers. It takes time to find the perfect puzzle that challenges you without frustrating you to the point of abandoning the puzzle. The more you play, the more you expose yourself to these puzzles, the more you understand how to approach them and how to solve them and this process becomes very enjoyable. You become an expert.