Bored? Are you looking for a fun and enjoyable activity that can help you pass the time? If these are your concerns, then why not try solving puzzles for a change? Puzzles come in different forms, from simple types that are made for kids, to mind-boggling types that can take you hours to finish.
If you think that solving puzzles is just for geeks, think again. Do you know that these fun activities not only help boost a person’s analytical thinking, but also help develop logical and deduction skills? Puzzles not only keep you busy, but also help enhance your mind power!
If you’re bored, or if you just want an enjoyable hobby, try solving puzzles. Here are the top ten most enjoyable, challenging and popular puzzles of all time. See how many of these you can take on.
10. Dot To Dot: Connect The Dots
A fun and stimulating puzzle made for kids, the connect the dots game is solved with one simple rule. Using drawn lines, connect the numbered dots with each other to form a hidden picture. This fun activity is usually given to young children to help them develop basic math skills. However, there are some puzzles that are also suitable for grownups.
 Connect the Dots to find out what this is |
You might say that this puzzle is too simple and too childish. Yet, if you’re not in the mood for deep analytical thoughts, this will suit you fine. Have fun and marvel at the funny, squiggly, dotted pictures you will create.
9. The Mathematical Stacking Puzzle: The Tower Of Hanoi
If you like stacking (and solving), then this puzzle can definitely quell your boredom. Considered a mathematical game, the Tower of Hanoi is made of three pegs and a number of different-sized disks that can slide down the pegs. The largest is located at the bottom, and the smallest is located at the uppermost part.
The rules of this puzzle are simple: move the entire disk stack from one peg to another, provided that you follow these instructions:
- A disk can’t be placed on top of a disk that’s smaller than it
- Only one disk can be moved one at a time
- Only the uppermost disk can be removed from the stack one at a time
 A Tower of Hanoi with 8 discs made of wood |
Some find the Tower of Hanoi easy, some find it very challenging. It all depends on the stacking techniques you know and how you use them.
8. Seeing Figures: The Tangram Puzzle
A blue tangram puzzle
Tangram puzzles are ideal for imaginative and resourceful individuals who love forming shapes. This game consists of seven pieces with different geometric shapes, called “tans”. Using only these pieces, the solver must create different kinds of simple figures by laying out and adjoining the shapes against each other.
If you have friends, invite them to join when you play tangram. You can set timers to make the game more fun and exciting.
7. The Mathematical Crossword: The Kakuro Puzzle
Got a cravin’ for math calculating? Then you should try solving this unique crossword-style mathematical puzzle. The design of the Kakuro Puzzle is similar to that of typical crosswords, but instead of filling the blank spaces with letters, you fill them with numbers. Sound confusing?
The objective is to place the digits from one to nine in each box without duplicating any number. There are clues on the sides of the box corresponding to the supposed sum of the numbers you should place.
 A Kakuro Puzzle and its solution on the right |
A kakuro puzzles may seem brain-toggling; but if you love math, then it is a must-solve puzzle for you. Not only can it help sharpen your calculating skills, but it can also help enhance your deduction skills.
6. Spot The Not: Spot The Difference Puzzle
If you’ve got a sharp eye and an ability to spot even the tiniest detail, then you should opt for a spot the difference puzzle.
 A sample of a spot the difference illustration |
This puzzle game consists of two identical images, but with several unnoticeable differences between them. Just like connect the dots, this might seem like a childish game. Yet, contrary to what many think, this puzzle is still very popular among many adults because of its simplicity. You won’t have to think too hard to finish this puzzle.
5. Pick Up The Pieces: The Jigsaw Puzzle
Not afraid of a little mess? Then you should get a jigsaw puzzle. A jigsaw puzzle is made of numerous little colored pieces that will create a solid picture when fitted and assembled together. There’s something fun about jigsaw puzzles. Maybe it’s the feeling of fulfillment that you get after seeing every little piece in its perfect place and admiring the picture you have created.
 A jigsaw puzzle of a historical map from 1639 |
The difficulty of jigsaw pieces vary. There are some that can be solved in a few minutes, consisting only of a few pieces. Some are made of hundreds or even thousands of pieces that can take you days to accomplish. This popular puzzle will surely keep you preoccupied, but with a little patience, you’ll definitely find this enjoyable.
4. The Colorful Thinking Box: Rubik’s Cube
An unsolved Rubiks Cube
If you’re looking for an enjoyable but portable puzzle you can carry around, then you should get a Rubik’s cube. This is a simple mechanical cube that has six faces made of smaller cubes you can rotate. Each of its six sides has a particular color.
The Rubik’s cube is probably the most famous puzzle cube toy of all time. It’s really simple to solve this puzzle: you just have to rotate the cube’s small faces to restore the solid color to each side.
3. Where’s That Word?: The Word Seek Puzzle
If you’ve got a quick and keen eye that can spot words in a jumble of letters, then this puzzle is made for you. Also called a word hunt puzzle, this popular game consists of a grid of jumbled letters arranged at random. At first, it won’t make sense, but if you look closer, you’ll spot various words hidden within the letters, either vertically, horizontally, backwards or diagonally.
 A sample word seek puzzle |
You don’t have to be very intelligent to solve this puzzle. All you need is a bit of patience and a sharp eye.
2. Filling In The Boxes: The Crossword Puzzle
Do you know a three-lettered word that is synonymous with a sea bird? Do you know the last name of Amelia, a female pilot who mysteriously disappeared during the 1940’s? If your vocabulary and trivia knowledge is wide enough to answer these questions, then you should be solving crosswords.
With the given context clues, you need to fill out a grid with the missing words, interconnecting them with each other until all the empty grid boxes are filled up. A word of caution, though: be very careful when filling out the spaces. One wrong letter, and the whole puzzle will become messed up.
 American, British, and Japanese style grids for a crossword puzzle |
The crossword is one of the oldest and most widespread puzzles today. It can be very tricky, but that’s probably why it’s so popular.
1. The Number Placement Puzzle: Sudoku Loco
No, this is not an equation puzzle, even if it does involve lots of numbers. You don’t need a high mathematical IQ to solve Sudoku since it only involves number placement. As a result, Sudoku is the number one most popular and enjoyable puzzle today.
Sudoku consists of a box of nine, divided into nine smaller boxes (making 81 boxes in all). Some of the boxes are randomly filled in with numbers. Using these as your clues, you need to fill in the remaining blank spaces with the numbers 1 to 9. The catch is that no number should repeat itself in any of the nine boxes in the rows or the columns.
 A sudoku puzzle and its solution on the right |
Solving Sudoku does not need any calculations. All you need is some patience, logic and good deduction skills.These puzzles can definitely help quell your boredom and add fun to your life. At first, you might find them a bit frustrating, irksome and even cumbersome; but with some patience, perseverance and mind power, you can easily conquer these puzzling games.
You might even find yourself craving more.
Happy solving!
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