Labyrinths are the ultimate puzzle. After all, they were so important at one point that they were guarded by half-human, half-bull beasts with massive axes! Well, even if you don’t have to face a minotaur, you might still feel like you did by the time you are finished with one of the 12 different difficulties of the Inside3 Labyrinth cube. What we loved about Inside3 is that there’s a lot more to this puzzle than meets the eye. Unlike a normal maze puzzle, you can’t see where your ball is at any given time. Sure, you can see a map of the different layers of your maze on the outside of your puzzle, but the cubes are solid colors that you can’t see through. This is the kind of gift that is equally perfect for the puzzle lover in your life or the person that you enjoy torturing!
Get yours today at: Inside3
Not all games are about winning and losing, some (like Authentic Agility’s ‘How Do You See the World’) are about getting to know yourself and your loved ones better. The rules are simple. Roll the Dice, pull a Question and then everyone has to answer. It’s a great way to learn new things about the people in your life. We really loved that everyone had to answer each question. That makes it so no one feels singled out during the game.
Get yours today at: Authentic Agility
If you are looking for a fun game to play with just a couple of people or a whole family, fast-moving, matching games like Pillow Fight are a great choice. the rules are simple. Be the first to find the pair of pillows and then land a blow on one f your opponents. The game is over when all the pillows have been matched and the person who landed the most blows stands triumphant. It’s not a complicated game, but it’s a fun game. It moves fast, it’s very competitive and it is the kind of game that brings a lot of energy to the group. You should definitely consider sliding Pillow Fight under the Christmas Tree or into a stocking this year!
Get yours today at: University Games
Like Dungeon & Dragons but for nerds who like “sports ball”, Tudor Games’ Electronic Football is an instant classic that still holds up today in an era dominated by Madden. Powered by nostalgic and a little imagination, have two of your favorite teams face off on a vibrating gridiron for electric football supremacy! There are two versions available, with the deluxe set coming with a metal playing field and two starter set figurines. The 11-piece figurines are unpainted and not detailed, but the color plastic pieces can be self-customized similar to most hobby miniatures. However, if painting miniatures is not your thing because you can’t color within the lines, Tudor also sells pre-painted team sets separately of all your favorite NFL teams. This is a must get holiday gift safe for all ages, but when you do, make sure you have enough space under the Christmas tree because this bad boy measures in at a battleship size of 32″ x 16″!
Get yours today at: Tudor Games
Labyrinths are popular this year! You’ve seen the Inside3, but the Smart Egg is a totally different kind of labyrinth. Instead of trying to work the ball through the maze, you have a barbell that has to make it from one end of a sealed egg to the other. It is impossible to see what is happening on the inside and the only way to get it through is to feel around and make it happen. The Smart Egg puzzles are available in multiple difficulties and make for great gifts or stocking stuffers for anyone who loves a challenge!
Get yours today at: Bepuzzled
We love when a gift can crossover into multiple areas and that is exactly what’s happening here with Bepuzzled DIY Puzzle Vase. Yes, it’s a puzzle, but it is also an art project. When you purchase the vase, you also get a set of markers so that you can customize it however you like. Then, you take the vase apart and give the 3D jigsaw puzzle as a gift. When the giftee is able to re-assemble the vase, they end up with a functional vessel for a flower that you decorated especially for them! It is as fun as it is thoughtful!
Get yours today at: Bepuzzled
If you are looking for an interesting party game for a group of friends who aren’t afraid to get a little weird, we’d like to suggest Do Not Disturb. The game is entirely contained inside a wooden box with a door and a Do Not Disturb sign. Inside the box are a series of picture cards with situations that are currently happening inside the imaginary motel room on the other side of the door. It’s up to you to decide whether you will walk in, run away or call the police and it’s up to your friends to see if they know you well enough to guess your decision. The game is a lot of fun with a close group of friends and even more fun if some spiked eggnog is being sipped while you play!
Get yours today at: University Games
Are you Dumber Than A Box Of Rocks is the trivia game that literally wants to know if you and your friends are dumber than an actual box of rocks. You and your friends are asked a question where the answer is either 0,1, or 2. You guess as a group and then shake a box of rocks with markings on them. Once you open the box, you’ll be able to see the rocks’ guess. If you got it right, you move forward a spot. If the rocks got it right, they move forward. Whoever reaches the finish line first is the winner. Will it be you of the box of rocks?!? This game is fast moving and great to play with some friends and a few beers. With all the cold winter’s nights that we’ve got ahead of us, ‘Are You Dumber Than A Box of Rocks’ might be exactly what you need.
Get yours today at: University Games
Stupid Deaths is a fun game for a group of 4-6 players and a perfect game for anyone who loves things like Failblog and The Darwin Awards. The concept is simple. You listen to stories about people dying in stupid ways and then you and your friends guess if it was a true story or a false story. if you get it right, you move forward on the game board. However, if you get it wrong, the grim reaper takes a step in your direction. You’ve not only got to beat your friends to the finish line, but you have to get there before Death himself catches up with you! This game can be a lot of fun, but if you are getting it to play with friends, it really gets good with at least four people.
Get yours today at: University Games
Smart Ass is a great game that every family of group of friends should have on hand to play. It’s best for people at least 12 years old and is good for any group from 2-6 people. The style of the game is a lot like the $10,000 Pyramid. When it is your turn to go, someone will read you clues about a person, place or thing. If you are successfully able to guess what they are talking about, you get to roll to move forward. It has a fast pace and it’s a blast to watch your friends lose their minds over things they know but can’t quite figure out in the heat of competition. It’s a blast and definitely worth checking out!
Get yours today at: University Games
Hanayama continues to innovate the world of metal puzzles. Their latest invention takes the idea of their brain-teasing puzzles and combines them with the game of Chess. As you move up from the pawns to the King and Queen, the difficulty of the puzzles increases. You goal is to find a way to open the chess pieces and release the coin inside. You can even buy a complete chess set of puzzles. This is a great new take on the Hanayama puzzle and it makes for an excellent gift for puzzlers of any skill-level.
Get yours today at: Hanayama
Hanayama is a legend in the world of puzzles. Their puzzles are deceptively simple and infuriatingly challenging. Most of them are as simple as taking two pieces of metal apart and then figuring out how to put them together. It should be simple, but they are harder than you can imagine! If you know anyone who loves puzzles, there’s a good chance that they already have at least one Hanayama in their collection. The great news, however, is that there are a ton of different puzzles you can buy in varying designs and difficulties. If you have a kid who wants to get into puzzles, get them a level 1 or 2. If you have someone on your gift list with who has already tackled a few Hanayamas, throw them a loop and get them a level six!
Get yours today at: Hanayama
Bepuzzled’s Dyad Twist crosses the line between a puzzle and a fidget toy. It’s a complicated beain teaser with 30 different challenges that can be performed using the two polyhedral shapes, but it is also nearly impossible to put down. Once you pick it up, you get sucked in and you have to keep playing with it. It’s both fun and soothing to play roll the pieces back and forth and see how they fold together. We were playin with the Dyad Twist for at least 20 minutes before we even realized that you could do specific challenges with it. Then, it just got even more fun!
Get yours today at: BePuzzled
Five minutes into your first Pixel Puzzle, you will probably realize that standard LEGO kits are for wimps. The challenge (and detail) that you get from these sets blows LEGOs out of the water. We’ll be honest, these kits aren’t for the faint of heart, but they are tremendously satisfying when you complete one. Both the challenge and the detail come from the fact that the blocks (pixels) that you build with are tiny. We didn’t measure, but we are guessing that they are less than 1/4th the size of legos. Our absolute favorite sets in the bunch at the 559 piece sushi set and the 250 piece, rainbow-farting unicorn set. We may have pulled out a little hair while putting them together, but they were worth it. If mythical horses and Asian Cuisine aren’t your cup of tea, you can also find sets that make everything from cupcakes and flamingos to Astronauts and hungry sharks.
Get yours today at: BePuzzled
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