Clickmazes

[Nepster]

A few weeks ago I stumbled over the website Clickmazes, which has some brilliant logical puzzles (and several actual mazes). Unfortunately most of them use in-browser Java applets, which are a nightmare to run in any modern browser. I would still encourage you to have a look at it, if you like logical puzzles.

One of these puzzles is the BoxPuzzle, which is the hardest logical puzzle type I know that fits on a 3x4 grid. Given the problems in playing the puzzle on the homepage, I coded it myself and created 25 new puzzles for it (to avoid too heavy copyright infringements). This game is attached to this post as a Windows application.
Linux users can find the C# code in my git repo and build from there.

[bsmith]

I totally forgot about the Clickmazes website!  Thanks for refreshing my memory.

[Simon]

This is a beautiful puzzle and a straightforward implementation.

I've solved the first two maps and am already stuck on the third. This looks simple enough, I'm surprised that I haven't got it yet. I'll give it another go immediately after finishing this post.

Let us commence the wonderful thread with issues burying other issues!

• #1. Arrow keys and WASD moves the pusher, but WASD is not explained in the manual. Expected: Both are explained in the manual.
• #2. Linux/Mono built from source. Space may restart the map, but it also selects highlit button in the 4-button row below the map. This is usually on the next-map button. Expected instead: Hotkeys do what they shall do according to the manual. Make different hotkey, don't highlight buttons?
• #3. I move, then I move in a way that undoes the first move exactly. Consider to not record this as a loop in the move history (that you navigate with the undo command), but instead remove both moves from the undo history. Keep the undo list as short as possible. It's probably fine if you don't prune larger circles.
• #4. The English docs claim that puzzles reside in "Maze XY.txt", but the files are called "Puzzle_3-3-10-2-1.txt". The German docs claim that puzzles reside in "Puzzle XY.txt", again that's not how the files are called. Expected: Docs match the files shipped with the repository.
• #5. Maps 6 and 7 seem to be exact mirror inverses of each other, after we make the only possible 2 opening moves on each? It doesn't prevent me from getting stuck on map 7 after solving map 6...

-- Simon

[Nepster]

#1. Arrow keys and WASD moves the pusher, but WASD is not explained in the manual. Expected: Both are explained in the manual.

Thanks, will add this.

#2. Linux/Mono built from source. Space may restart the map, but it also selects highlit button in the 4-button row below the map. This is usually on the next-map button. Expected instead: Hotkeys do what they shall do according to the manual. Make different hotkey, don't highlight buttons?

That's again a bug in Mono - on Windows it works properly. Will see what I can do here.

#3. I move, then I move in a way that undoes the first move exactly. Consider to not record this as a loop in the move history (that you navigate with the undo command), but instead remove both moves from the undo history. Keep the undo list as short as possible. It's probably fine if you don't prune larger circles.

Good idea.

#4. The English docs claim that puzzles reside in "Maze XY.txt", but the files are called "Puzzle_3-3-10-2-1.txt". The German docs claim that puzzles reside in "Puzzle XY.txt", again that's not how the files are called. Expected: Docs match the files shipped with the repository.

Will adapt that. The game actually reads all files starting with "Puzzle". Note also, that the level files in the git repo are slightly different than the ones I posted here. They still contain some hints and are named differently.

#5. Maps 6 and 7 seem to be exact mirror inverses of each other, after we make the only possible 2 opening moves on each? It doesn't prevent me from getting stuck on map 7 after solving map 6...

Yeah, they are indeed basically the same. Thanks for spotting it.

[minglw]

Thanks Nepster for the BoxPuzzle!

This game is also present in the Machinarium game.

Similar to Sokoban, except that you have to go inside a box to push it.

[607]

A very interesting game! I haven't even been able to beat level 2 yet... I hope they aren't sorted by difficulty?

[Nepster]

I implemented Simon's suggestions. The updated game is attached to the first post.

A very interesting game! I haven't even been able to beat level 2 yet... I hope they aren't sorted by difficulty?

They are sorted by difficulty in the same way lemmings levels are sorted by difficulty - namely with a lot of misjudged levels. But overall one can certainly say, that the 3x3 levels are much easier than the 3x4 levels.
But don't worry too much if you can't solve them. All of them are extremely difficult.

[Simon]

Thanks! This undo function is fun.

The repo at bitbucket.org/StephanNeupert/box-puzzle doesn't yet have the commits, newest commit is from 2017-09-28. I've dabbled in your shipped binary instead.

#6. Undo moves a large box in addition when it should undo a small-box move. To replicate, go to level 3, and perform these moves: up, up, left, right, down, down, left, up. Press undo. Expected: The large blue stays where it is. Observed: The large blue warps two spots downwards, on the pusher. (Guesswork: The undo function prunes too many circles, even when the pusher's circle has moved boxes nontrivially. My incentive for that guess is that, after the above repro instructions, you can press undo once more and are back at the starting position exactly.)

-- Simon

[607]

@Simon: Does this mean I should not install the update?

[Nepster]

I just fixed Simon's bug regarding the undo feature and it should now work properly. So you, 607, can now safely update using the version attached to the first post.

[minglw]

It's good that the solution is saved, but it would be even nicer if there's a way to replay the solution (or retrace the solution).