...Sogo Box

 Last time I wrote about my first puzzle (not really but sort of) so I figured I would follow up with my most recent.

These days, most of what I buy is either Hanayama or Karakuri, with the odd Pelikan or Wood Wonder (and hopefully soon Ars Aenigma) scattered in for variety. I almost miss the early days of buying anything and everything indiscriminately, but now I know what I like and I generally stick to it. I leave the high-end metal SD chasing to others, and the small-run, list-based releases of Stickman & the like will always be out of my reach, I think. I like the bits-of-paper-in-a-hat, equal-opportunity approach of the Karakuri lotteries.

I'm not really one to chase unicorns either. The rarity and value of older pieces only leads to disappointment (that said, everyone that knows me knows I desperately want a Karakuri Rose, I solve Allard's copy every time I'm down there,ut there are many, many things I would desperately want if I allowed myself to, the Ferris Wheel, Ukulele, Trumpet, Piano, the Waterfall and Lotus boxes, etc, etc, etc). I keep an eye on auctions just because there will sometimes be things that fly under the radar, which leads me to... 

Sogo is from Shou Sugimoto, made in 2019 so juuust before my time. I was able to pick this up on Puzzle Paradise for a very reasonable price without knowing too much about it, other than that I liked the outside. It has a very pretty outside, just like my wife. 

Can an idiot solve Sogo Box? 

Yes, without too much difficulty 

I don't think it's a spoiler to say that it's a variation on the classic sliding panel boxes that the Japanese makers do so well. I like the amount of different tricks that can be used in the same form factor, and this one has a very pleasing, not terribly difficult, sequence of motions. Fun to play with. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

...the 2025 Karakuri Christmas Presents?

Image
 End of an era.  I am very thankful that I never set out to post once a week here. I honestly don't know how those other guys keep churning out quality content. It's been a month since my last post.  The discord group have a rule (quite rightly) to refrain from any spoilers regarding the Karakuri Christmas presents until after Christmas itself. Some people like to wait and open them on Christmas day, I rip open the box like a maniac the first chance I get. So I had the idea back in early December to write a 'spoiler-free' review but just treat it as a joke. It would've been full of things like -  Kawashima's - ▇▇▇▇ it was so▇▇▇▇▇▇windy ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ saw a ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ chicken ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ lay the same ▇▇▇▇▇▇ egg twice ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ But then the Epstein files thing happened and suddenly there were redacted jokes all over the internet, and then I got the flu and then it was Christmas and then it was 2nd Christmas and then it was hogmanay and then I was so. Very. Very. Ti...
Read more

...MPP?

Image
 Oh God. Oh God, there's people here. I don't solve puzzles around people, I solve puzzles on my own. But here they are, with their eyes and their mouths and their looking and their talking. They're expecting me to talk as well, they think I have a brain. Some of them are wearing corduroy. Some of them smell like Mr Kipling's Fondant Fancies.  There's Allard, the grand Poobah with his massive collection like a generous Smaug. 'Sure you can borrow the Arkenstone, just reset it and put it back where you found it.' There's Dan, with whom I spend a certain amount of time plotting things. There's Amy, who has a habit of quietly singing children's songs when she's concentrating.  There's Tamsin, who struggles with hedgehogs.  There's the monkeys Ali & Steve, who gift me a teeny tiny pile of brass and a pig roll.  There's usually Kyle, who trusted me with the prototype of his first puzzle and is also, therefore, an idiot. I don't...
Read more

...Kleeshay Box

Image
 Kleeshay is the prolific Dee Dixon's (AKA Dedwood Crafts) newest puzzle box. Unusually, for this box he sold far more 'Scratch & Dent' versions then regular, pristine-perfection ones. Dee is one heck of a woodworker so I can only assume there's something about the black walnut or the lacewood that unavoidably leads to more scratches and dents. My own copy does have a couple of noticeable chips and dings, but nothing worth caring about. Can an idiot solve Kleeshay Box?  Possibly, if you're lucky  The first step is a doozy, which is going to need equal parts thinking, exploration and luck. There is a lot of noise coming from inside, but not much of it is very helpful. This idiot had to take a hint and it turned out that I had tried the right thing, just hadn't quite executed it correctly. Once I knew exactly what I had to do, it still took a couple of tries to get it right.  Once that first step is out the way, it's a clear run to the finish line, or the ...
Read more