Puzzles Game

[Gervie]

Game: River Crossing

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, January 2003.


Object: Get all people to the other side of the river. (4 variants)

This is a collection of some classical 'Rivercrossing' puzzles.

Variant 1:
Three adults and three children went for a walk and found themselves on a riverbank. There was no bridge to cross the river, but they discovered a boat moored at the shore. It was so small that it could carry only one adult or two children at the time.
How could all six of them cross the river to the other side, and what would be the smallest number of trips necessary?

Drag the tokens to move the people. To move the boat, drag the left part of the boat to the other side of the river.

To see the description of the other variants, select menu item Help/Game Description after starting the variant.

Variant 2: Three jealous couples
Variant 3: Fox, duck and corn
Variant 4: Missionaries and cannibals


For literature on these and similar classic puzzles see:
- many books by Martin Gardner
- many books by Kobon Fujimura, for example: 'The Tokyo Puzzles' 1979.

More free games software as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage: karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Updated 05/17/03
minor bugs corrected

Download River Crossing Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: RNA-Puzzle

Invented and implemented by Ingo Althofer, May 2003


The player has to build a complete RNA string around a randomly given DNA cycle such that each pairing fits well. The admissible pairings are A-T, C-G, G-C, and U-A.

The player can take RNA molecules - one per round - from a small heap. The selected nucleotide is added to one of the two ends of the initial RNA string. A randomly acting Provider refills the heap after each move. Because of the Provider's randomness the player can not plan completely deterministically. Like in Scrabble, it is often a rather good strategy to keep a "mixed heap".

Warning: When you are familiar with the biological process, you know that in nature the RNA strings are NOT built by adding bases to both ends of the initial string in arbitrary order. So, this puzzle is not suited for learning the chemical/biological process! By playing the RNA-Puzzle you will probably learn more about discrete stochastics than about biology...

The puzzle may be played with Zillions on a computer monitor. But you may also do it in a more traditional way with a set of 52 cards.

Download RNA-Puzzle Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Robot

Implemented and implemented by Karl Scherer, December 2000.


Object: Guide the little Robot to the exit door. (10 variants)

The Robot moves one step at a time orthogonally.
The power lines are danger zones. The Robot should never enter a square with power lines, because the strong electromagnetic fields will destroy its ciruitry.

You are the controller of a little experimental Robot. The problem is that some overworked and underpaid programmers had left a couple of bugs in the Robot's internal programs, so it will not always go where you direct it. You have to learn and understand the Robot's faulty behaviour and counteract it.
Of course in each game variant the programming bugs are different.

Note that with a right mouse click you can redesign the red danger zone. This give you a vast number of challenges you can create for the little Robot.


I got the idea for the game Robot from the movie 'Short Circuit'. Have you seen it? If not, I recommend that you hire the video! (There is a sequel, too: 'Short Circuit 2'.)


For more freeware as well as real puzzles and games see my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Robot Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Roll Cubes

Implemented by László Nagy, February 2001.
Basic idea of variant 4., 5., 6.: by István Polyák (1993),
variant 1., 2., 3. by László Nagy (1993.)


Just like 14-15 Puzzle but here Cubes rolling...
SolutionVariant 4., 5., 6. for Beginner, SolutionVariant 1., 2. for Experts, SolutionVariant 3. only for Mathematiker!

Download Roll Cubes Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Rook's Tour

Invented, solved and implemented by Karl Scherer, January 2003.


Object: Visit all positions of the board. (5 variants)

First click the board to drop your chess Rook. Then move the rook orthogonally as far as you like by clicking on the target square. The length of the move will be marked at the top.

You have to use a different length of move every time.
When all lengths are used up, you get a new set of lengths. (The indicators at the top will be reset). Hence on the 6x6 board you have to use 7 sequences of moves, each sequence consisting of 5 moves, having lengths 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

You may not step on a square you have been to before.
You win when you have visited all squares on the board.

The other variants use larger or smaller boards.
Once you have found a solution, drop the Rook on a different square and then try to solve the puzzle.
Is there a solution no matter what square you start on?


Here are some related questions for the mathematicians amongst you:
- Can you prove that there is a solution for any board size?
- Can you prove that there is a solution for any starting position?

More free games software as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage: karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Rook's Tour Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Rose

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, June 2001


Object: Recreate the original image, a rose. (four variants)

The image of the rose is cut up into 7 x 7 = 49 small squares. At the start click the board to allow Zillions to randomize the image.

There are nine squares which are sensitive for input. When you click one of them, the eight surrounding squares will be cycled clockwise by 90 degrees at a time. (Each puzzle piece always stays with the correct side pointing up, though).

In variant 2 this cycling is 45 degrees at a time.

Variants 3 and 4 are like variants 1 and 2, but they display coloured concentric rings instead of a rose and are therefore somewhat easier to play.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games at http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Rose Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Roulette

Implemented by Karl Scherer, April 2001.


This is the standard European roulette game.

In the bottom left corner your current assets are displayed. The bottom row shows the types of dollar values you can bet. Click a dollar note and then a position on the board. Finally, click the roulette wheel to roll the ball.

Straight bet (numbers) pays 35 to 1. Place at number.
Split bet (2 numbers) pays 17 to 1. Place between two numbers.
Street bet (3 numbers) pays 11 to 1. Place at top or bottom of number array.
Corner bet (4 numbers) pays 8 to 1. Place at a cross-intersection.
Six line bet (6 numbers) pays 6 to 1. Place at a T-intersection.
Column bet (12 numbers) pays 2 to 1. Place at left border.
Red, Black, Odd, Even pays 1 to 1.

You start with 1000 dollars on your account. After each round, the top right corner will show 'win' or 'loss' and a win multiplier.

You lose the game when you have lost all your money.


More related freeware as well as real puzzles and games see my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Roulette Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Row

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, May 2002


Object: Find the longest rows on the board. (2 variants)

First click anywhere on the board. Sixtyfour Butterflies of two different types will appear.
Find the longest row of similar butterflies on the board, either orthogonally or diagonally. Click the first and last butterfly in the row to capture the whole row of butterflies.
From the ones left over, find again the longest row of any type of butterfly. You lose if you did not pick the longest row on the board.

Keep on doing so until you have no rows of length three left. Then click the OK button.
You lose if you clicked OK despite the fact that there is still a row of length three or more on the board. Otherwise you win.

Variant 2 is the same game on a plain background, which makes it somewhat easier to play.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Row Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Royal Turnoff

Created by W. D. Troyka, September 2001.


These are variants of the game Turn Off (standard Zillions game) in which the patterns in which lights turn on or off correspond to the moves of royal chess pieces. In the King version, for example, when a light is clicked, that light plus the lights on all adjacent squares -- the squares to which a King could move -- change state. In the Queen version, all lights in the same row, column, or diagonal change state. And so on for the Rook, Bishop, and Knight.

The difficulty of the games varies dramatically. The King variants take only four obvious moves to solve, whereas the 5x5 Knight variant is too difficult even for Zillions to solve. The number of moves for the quickest known solutions for each variant are provided in the strategy section, along with an analysis of solutions to certain variants.

Download Royal Turnoff Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Rubic's Cube

Invented by Professor Rubic in 1986,
implemented by Karl Scherer, August 2002


Object: Recreate the original setup of the 3x3x3 cube. (2 variants)

The setup shows the 3x3x3 cube from the front and from the back.
Click anywhere on the board to allow Zillions to randomize the cube.

Then move one of the circular stickers on the cube or click any of the arrows to rotate a slice of the cube.

You win if you manage to recreate the original setup.

The cross-shaped diagram shows how close you are to the original setup. It is a flattened version of the cube which shows only those stickers which are already at the correct position.

Variants 2 ('Freeplay') allows you to exercise your moves using the original cube setup.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Updated 08/10/02
added flattened cube display

Download Rubic's Cube Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Rule 110

Created by W. D. Troyka, January 2003.


Rule 110 is a cellular automaton, similar to John Conway's Game of Life, which has been scripted by Karl Scherer (Alive and Alive_Auto), as well as by Robert Price (Game of Life). Rule 110 has recently gained attention as a result of a book written by Stephen Wolfram, known in mathematics circles as the author of the software program Mathematica. The book, called a New Kind of Science, suggests that both space and time can be modeled by cellular automata such that a relatively simple set of rules governing the content of a cell might lead to the actual complexity that we experience in the physical world. A cell in this case would be a discrete unit of space, itself spread into discrete units along a time axis, with rules governing its transition from one state to another based on the properties of neighboring cells.

As an example of how simple rules governing cellular automata can lead to complex structures, Wolfram analyzes the basic cellular automata created on a square grid when the rule governing the color of a square (white or black) depends solely on the colors of the three squares above to the northwest, north, and northeast. There are eight possible combinations of colors for these three squares. Because each of these combinations can be defined as causing the cell under consideration to be either white or black, there are a total of 256 (2 to the 8th) possible rules.

Most of these rules do not lead to interesting results. Rule 110, however, if applied to a sufficiently large graph, begins to generate complex irregular structures that do not appear to be predictable from the input row -- the top row of the graph -- or the rule governing coloring. Rule 110 states that a cell remains white if the three squares above are all white, all black, or black-white-white. Otherwise it is colored black. Wolfram purports to show that Rule 110 is a universal computer because it can emulate a universal Turing Machine. (The Turing Machine has also been coded by Karl Scherer). This means that any calculation capable of being performed by any mechanical method, i.e., on any computer, can be performed with Rule 110 using a suitably chosen input row and sufficiently long graph, with the output appearing in a designated bottom row.

This rules file allows you to run iterations of Rule 110, or any of the other 255 rules, with any chosen input row. The graphs come in sizes 10x10, 25x25, 50x50, 80x80, and 100x100. The larger graphs may take several seconds to load. This script departs from the technical definition of Rule 110 because the rows are considered to wrap around the horizontal edges. If you run the default setting once, you will get a technically correct Rule 110 graph through one iteration. For most rules and input rows, however, the first iteration will involve some wraparound effect. Subsequent iterations are always affected. The wraparound is a necessary compromise to make the graph presentable for a large number of rows. The graph also wraps around from bottom to top in successive iterations. This does not affect the accuracy of the rules but merely replaces older rows with newer ones.

For details on how to use this program, please consult the strategy section under the Help menu.

Please note: Rule 110 requires Zillions of Games version 2.0 (or higher)!

Download Rule 110 Now!/url]

 

[Gervie]

Game: Sailing

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, September 2000


Object: Get the little sailing boat into the harbour.
The sailor Piet Hein is on heavy seas and you have to help him to get back home.

The game starts at the lower left square and ends at the top right square. The squares are colour-coded. Each colour represents one of the four orthogonal directions. The colour tell you where you go next (pushed by strong currents and heavy winds).

In the NSEW-variants, the four colours mean that you have to go North, South, East or West (North being up). Which colour codes for which direction you will find out quickly.

In the LRFB-variants, the colours denote whether you have to go left, right, forwards and backwards (!) from where you are. Yes, sometimes you might be sent backwards by strong headwinds! For these LRFB directions it is important to know where you came from. We assume that the sailing boat arrived at the scene from the left. E.g. if it sits at the start on a 'Forward' colour, then we have to move it from square a1 to b1.


Sailing is more of a memory game than a maze, because there are no dead ends. One only has to find out and remember what each colour means in order not to stray from the only path.
The LRFB-variants have the additional twist that they contain self-crossing paths. Hence the path to the goal may use the same square several times. This can make the journey much longer than the number of squares on the board would indicate. (Variant 8 needs 184 moves, which seems to be the longest path thus constructable.)
Note that in the NSEW-variants, the path can only contain as many steps as the number of squares on the board.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games under http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Sailing Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Sailing II

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, September 2000


Object: Get the little sailing boat into the harbour.
The sailor Piet Hein is on heavy seas and you have to help him to get back home.

The game starts at the lower left square and ends at the top right square. The squares are colour-coded. The colours tell you where you go next (pushed by strong currents and heavy winds):

A dark red square tells you to move straight ahead.
A purple square tells you to turn left (relative to where you came from).
A light green square tells you to turn right (relative to where you came from).
A blue square tells you to turn straight back to where you came from.
A light red square is similar to a T-intersection: it tells you to turn left or right (relative to where you came from).
Hence you always have to watch where you came from. For the start, we assume that the sailing boat arrived at the scene from the left. E.g. if it sits at the start on a 'Forward' square, then we have to move it from square a1 to b1.


In contrast to the Zillions game SAILING, the game SAILING II is a memory game plus a maze. The difference comes from the introduction of 'T-intersections'.
The tricky part with these special T-intersections is - as with the other types of squares in SAILING (Left, Right, Forward, Backwards) - that they work in different ways depending from which direction you came from.

In contrast to the game SAILING, in the game SAILING II you can click on the boat to see where you are allowed to go.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games under http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Sailing II Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Sailing III

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, October 2000


Object: Get the little sailing boat into the harbour.
The sailor Piet Hein is on heavy seas and you have to help him to get back home.

Before you play this game, it is recommended that you play Sailing II first.

The game Sailing III starts at the lower left square and ends at the top right square. The squares are colour-coded. The colours tell you where you go next (pushed by strong currents and heavy winds):

A dark red square (with an arrow pointing up) tells you to move straight ahead.

A purple square (with a left arrow) tells you to turn left (relative to where you came from).

A light green square (with a right arrow) tells you to turn right 4 (relative to where you came from).

A blue square (with a down arrow) tells you to turn straight back to where you came from.

A light red square is similar to a T-intersection: it tells you to turn left or right (relative to where you came from).

The other colours work similarly.
The little arrows help you along, but remember that they only show directions indirectly! You always have to watch where you came from.

For the start, we assume that the sailing boat arrived at the scene from the left. E.g. if it sits at the start on a 'Forward' square (with upward arrow), then we have to move it from square a1 to b1.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games under http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Sailing III Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Saltwater

Implemented by Karl Scherer, November 2000.


Object: Create certain concentrations of salt solutions. (25 variants)

You are given two jugs, one with 3 liters capacity and one with 5 liters capacity, an unlimited supply of water and a salt tablet. The salt tablet produces a 100% salt solution when dropped into one liter of water.
The challenge is to produce different concentrations of salt solution.

The large numbers underneath the jugs show the current numbers of liters in the jug.
Click one of the top drops to fill a jug with water.
Click one of the bottom drops to dump the content of a jug into the drainage.

To pour water from one jug into another, click the top of the water level in one jug and move it across to another jug. The second jug will always get filled to the rim.

Each variant asks for a different concentration of solution and/or amount of solution. Numbers next to the jugs show the concentrations of the solutions. Unknown or (for the variant) unimportant concentrations will be marked as '???'.


The salt water problem as such is widely known. In the original version you have to calculate the salt concentrations yourself, of course. This Zillions game 'Saltwater' makes the problem less hard in that it calculates the salt concentrations for you.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games at my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Updated 08/02/03
more maths

Download Saltwater Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Semblo

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, July 2002


Object: Fill the 8x8 board with the given set of sticks. (6 variants)

A 8x8 board has been dissected into 1xn-Sticks. You have to fill the square again, without gaps or overlaps. Additionally, adjacent Sticks are not allowed to have the same colour (i.e., the same length)!

There are 16 buttons available where you can select the length and orientation of the Stick that you want to place.
The numbers display the amount of each type that is available.

You can also click any placed Stick to remove it from the board again and put it back onto its shelf.

You win when you have filled the square.

Variants 1,2,3,4,5 : fixed problems
Variant 6 : Construction Tool. This variant is a tool to construct such problems as presented in variants 1 to 5. First fill the square, then press the 'Play' button. This clears the 8x8 board, but keeps the Stick counters. The board is now playable exactly like in variants 1 to 5. You can save it as zsg file and show it as a puzzle to a friend.

Please note that there are two piece sets available.


More freeware as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Updated 03/22/03
removed the need to click the board first

Download Semblo Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Serviettes

Classic Puzzle, implemented by Karl Scherer, January 2003.


Object: Determine the order of the serviettes. (2 variants)

Eight square sheets of paper, all the same size, have been placed on the table. They overlap as shown.
One sheet (1) is shown completely, and the seven others are only partially exposed. Click the squares to number them in order from top to the bottom.

It is easy to create puzzles of this type, but you must be careful not to devise one that allows for more than one answer.


For literature on these and similar classic puzzles see:
- many books by Martin Gardner
- many books by Kobon Fujimura, for example: 'The Tokyo Puzzles' 1979.

More free games software as well as real puzzles and games at my homepage: karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Serviettes Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Setris

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, January 2001.


Setris is a relative of the famous computer game 'Tetris'.

Object: Avoid overflow of the container. (4 variants).

First click the container. A tile will appear which you have to place into the container.
Click the target square to place the tile. The sweet spot is always the lowest square of the most left file.

When any row of the container is full, it will disappear and the squares above it will move down one level. The counter at the top left will keep track of the number of rows you have made disappear.

If the container overflows, you lose. There is no win in this game.

Background design: Fractal Te0101r2 by Karl Scherer


For more freeware as well as real puzzles and games see my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Setris Now!

 

[Gervie]

Game: Setris II

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, February 2001.


Setris II is a relative of the famous computer game 'Tetris'.

Object: Avoid overflow of the container.

First click the container. A tile will appear which you have to place into the container.
Click the target square to place the tile. The sweet spot is always the lowest square of the most left file.
You get one point for each dropped tile.

New tiles may intersect with existing ones if the colours match!

If a row is full, it will disappear.

If the container overflows, you lose.
Try to get as many points as possible.

Background design: Fractal Te0101r2 by Karl Scherer


For more freeware as well as real puzzles and games see my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Setris II Now!/url]

 

[Gervie]

Game: Setris III

Invented and implemented by Karl Scherer, February 2001.


Setris III is a relative of the famous computer game 'Tetris'.

Object: Avoid overflow of the container. (2 variants)

First click the container. A tile will appear which you have to place into the container.
Click the target square to place the tile. The sweet spot is always the lowest square of the most left file.
You get one point for each dropped tile.

New tiles may intersect with existing ones if the colours match!

2x2 arrangements of monochrome coloured squares will disappear.

If the container overflows, you lose.
Try to get as many points as possible.

Variant 2 is easier: it uses only two colours.

Background design: Fractal Te0101r2 by Karl Scherer


For more freeware as well as real puzzles and games see my home page http://karl.kiwi.gen.nz.

Download Setris III Now!