Perplexing Puzzles: A Guide

Puzzles just never get the recognition they deserve. Often, they are seen as too easy or too hard. Here is a showcase of the Top Ten puzzles to play with your Neopet. Or secretly when your friends aren’t looking...

10. Cliffhanger

While this game is one of Neopia’s oldest, it is a classic. Based off of the game Hangman, Cliffhanger can be found in the far reaches of Terror Mountain. The game is played by filling in blanks letter by letter to guess the hidden word. When you guess incorrectly, the Tuskaninny moves farther towards the cliff. When he falls off, the game is over.

This game is definitely one to play alongside your Neopet. There are varying degrees of difficulty that both you and your pet will enjoy! It allows for the creative bonding between the two of you as you attempt to uncover the hidden words set forth. And be nice to the Tuskaninny... they pay him overtime.

9. Faerie Crossword

In Faerieland, the Library Faerie may be found running this elusive crossword puzzle. Each day, a new puzzle is generated, allowing Neopians from all over to attempt to solve it. The faster this puzzle is solved, the more neopoints that are gained from the reward. Take too long, or don’t finish, and you will be rewarded with nothing...

This game requires that you be up to date with the goings on around Neopia. If you live in a soggy old box... you probably shouldn’t be playing.

8. Kou-Jong

Beautifully painted tiles on a board for you to match up and clear - who could hope for a better idea? Kou-Jong is played by matching up the tiles that appear on the board with their counterparts until the entire board is empty. After three rounds, you are able to send your score for Neopoints, but the quicker that you complete each round, the better the score.

Now this is a brainteaser. For this game, you have to be able to concentrate on the task at hand while pointing out combinations of tiles that are the same. It is best not to look at the bonus timer too much when you play, otherwise, you can become nervous, making it harder for you to be able to pick out the tiles in time.

7. Destruct-O-Match II

The second version of a widely popular Neopian Game, this Tyrannian Twister is still a love for many. To play, clear the boulders by matching them up with the same color. The object of the game is to clear the entire board before going to the next level. Many times this is hard to do, so don’t get frustrated if you can’t the first time! There are a minimum number of boulders to clear through before you are allowed to move on! It gets harder as you go along. This game definitely takes practice.

My recommendation: Try and clear the earlier levels before moving on. It just gets harder as you go and if you are working towards the grand avatar for this game, it is easier to clear earlier levels and not clear the later ones for the right score. Practice makes perfect for this game! And, it would be nice if your Neopet would stay OFF the boulders...

6. Time Tunnel

Speed and cunning describe this puzzle game: the faster that you figure out all of the combinations, the better your score. In this game, you get twelve tries in each round to figure out the color combinations that unlock that round. Unlock them all and gain access to the door! Different colored marks will appear each time you try to unlock the door with a certain combination. For each green mark, you have one color in the right spot. For each orange mark, you have one color right, but in the wrong place.

If you are good at guessing and remembering what goes where, this game could be for you. There is also a bonus for guessing correctly in the time allotted for the bonus points. This game can cause fights between Neopet and owner like the fight between Gorix and Cylara when they tried different combinations to get the door open, but that is a story for another time!

5. Shapeshifter

Sinsi the Ixi is probably the smartest twelve-year-old Neopia has ever seen. She is smart and discovered the game of Shapeshifter single-handedly. You shift these symbols by using different shapes to make the goal symbol.

This game is definitely a brain buster and one that gets increasingly more difficult as you move to the next level. Guides are great when it comes to this game – or a tutor. Especially, if you find your Neopet completing the levels long before you have.

4. Sutek's Tomb

One of my personal favorites, Sutek's Tomb is one of the Lost Desert's most interesting games. The object is to clear the symbols by switching two to make a row of three or more. When they clear, the symbols above move down and you continue the process until the hourglass runs out.

Quick eyes are a must for this game. You have to be able to spot possible combinations from a mile away, literally. If you run out of combinations, the board automatically shuffles for you! Good luck, because if you are lucky, you may just be sporting a new avatar to show off to your friends before long!

3. Snowmuncher

Ahh. Snow. Yum! For some reason, this guy likes to eat snow. And we don’t blame him, do we? For Snowmuncher, the ultimate goal is to eat as much snow and gems as possible, without being bloated and reach the bottom within the designated time slot. There are different colored gems, each worth a different amount of points. And in later levels, there are evil snow looking worms that come after you with their pointy teeth. I would watch out for those.

The best thing to do for this game would be to pay attention to both the timer and how full you are on the way down. Once you reach one hundred percent bloated, that’s the end of the game for you. Your Neopet might be able to help you in this regard, as they have a better understanding of how much snow fills up neopets in general. It couldn’t hurt to ask for help, could it?

2. Roodoku

Roodoku is a hard, but a strangely enticing and addicting game. This puzzle game has a 9 by 9 grid made up of smaller, 3 by 3 grids. The numbers 1 through 9 fill both the rows of 9 and the smaller boxes. You must complete the 9 by 9 grid without using the same number twice in any row or column.

It does seem confusing, but there are plenty of numbers that are already on the board to help you start out. I would recommend playing on easy for a while before moving up to the harder grids. Sometimes, guessing can work well for you, but other times, it just completely loses any work you may have achieved up until that point.

1. Goparokko

One of Neopia’s newest games, Goparokko is definitely one that is also addicting to play. You have to travel deep into the jungle of Mystery Island, to find the masked Yurble to be able to play this game. Arrange the blocks in 2x2 squares of the same color and they disappear! Watch the timer, because, when time is up, the game is over!

I would shy away from the Yurble, just because, well, he has that funny mask on and he is a bit scary. Other than that, this game is fun to play and rather easy as well. If you are enjoying a rather slow day and want a game that is fun as well as simple enough to play, this is the game for you and your smart Neopet!

Well, I hope you enjoyed this guide of the top perplexing puzzles. I enjoyed making it and sharing some of the interesting puzzle games that I have found around Neopia. New or old, these classic games never go out of style.