English
A friend shared an article on Facebook the other day about the latest nerdy toy hitting stores this year: The Rubik's 360
Yes, I said Rubik.
Sounds familiar? Of course it does! It's our childhood's most popular tool of torture: The Rubik's Cube! My God, how I hated this toy!! So damn frustrating! Never solved it!
Apparently, 30 years later, the same inventor decides it is time to torture a new generation of innocent kids who will be undoubtedly receiving the Rubik's 360 this Christmas for two reasons:
1. REVENGE! Their parents were tortured with the cube, it's now time for them to hit back and be on the other end; i.e. inflicting the pain! :-P
2. IMMORTALITY! In Lebanon we have a proverb that says "One who has children never dies"; which means that if you have kids, they'll take after you, physically but also in their mannerism and attitude (and in our culture the family name is very important, so having a boy means allowing your name to carry on to the next generation) and so, the memory of you is kept alive through your children; i.e. you're immortal :-P All this seems unrelated to our topic here, but in fact, it is not because the whole point is to explain to you that no matter how hard you fight it, ultimately you will do like your parents did. And what did your parents do? They decided that getting you a Rubik's Cube would mean PEACE. Occupy that child for as long as possible! Well now it's your turn to suffer children's nagging... But also your turn to occupy them with their own Rubik! Ah, isn't life beautiful? Doesn't this entire existence seem so much fairer now?
Your kids' torture tool is not a cube, it's a bubble...
Different shape, same anguish! :-)
Rubik's cube inventor unveils testing 360 puzzle
Rubik's 360 will hit UK stores next week and promises to be just as challenging as its predecessor
Haroon Siddique
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 7 July 2009 12.24 BST
Almost 30 years after the Rubik's cube led many to a fit of pique and sleepless nights, its inventor is back with a new puzzle that promises to prove just as testing.
The Rubik's 360 will be launched in the UK next week and Erno Rubik hopes it can replicate the success of the cube, which has sold more than 350m units since its 1980 launch and remains the world's fastest-selling toy.
The puzzle is based on similar principles to the cube, with the objective being to steer six coloured balls inside a sphere into their respective home slots.
"I feel that the Rubik's 360 is one of the most innovative and exciting puzzles we've developed since the cube – adopting elements of my original design, challenging the solver to use skill, dexterity and logic," said the notoriously reclusive Rubik.
David Hedley Jones, senior vice-president of the Rubik's brand, said that, like the fiendishly difficult but addictive cube, the 360 looks like it should be quite easy. "But it is incredibly complicated. There are some really cunning tricks to it," he said.
It is the 64-year-old Hungarian inventor's first new puzzle for almost 20 years and, according to Rubik's, the level of pre-orders has already left stocks low.
It will be officially launched at Hamleys on 15 July and the London toy store said the 360, priced at £18, was the most popular item on its website, with thousands of inquiries received.
The Rubik's cube was invented in 1974 and its popularity exploded when it was exported from Hungary in 1980. The name entered the Oxford English Dictionary after just two years and the toy is a permanent exhibit in New York's Museum of Modern Art. It still has a cult following and 15m were sold last year.
While Rubik's is keen for the 360 to follow in the footsteps of the cube in terms of sales – it is already being touted as a Christmas bestseller – the new puzzle has fallen foul of one of the problems that afflicted its predecessor: fakes. Rubik's has warned customers to beware of copies after a spate of imitations appeared on eBay.
Of course, this reminded me that if a new puzzle is coming out soon, I should at least try and solve the original one right?
But unlike in the old days, we now have access to a wealth of information... On the net! This time, I skipped Google and directly hit YouTube with my fatidic question:
Apparently many people have already taken care of that matter and I found many videos willing to answer my question. Didn't have the patience to check them all because, well the first one (which is made of two parts) completely broke me! It was supposed to be simple damn it! Well I am still as clueless about Rubik as I was before! But I'm sure you guys are smarter than me, so go ahead, check it out and enjoy! As for me, my only solution is this.
Now... Waiting for the 360 "how to" guide on YouTube...
Yes, I said Rubik.
Sounds familiar? Of course it does! It's our childhood's most popular tool of torture: The Rubik's Cube! My God, how I hated this toy!! So damn frustrating! Never solved it!
Apparently, 30 years later, the same inventor decides it is time to torture a new generation of innocent kids who will be undoubtedly receiving the Rubik's 360 this Christmas for two reasons:
1. REVENGE! Their parents were tortured with the cube, it's now time for them to hit back and be on the other end; i.e. inflicting the pain! :-P
2. IMMORTALITY! In Lebanon we have a proverb that says "One who has children never dies"; which means that if you have kids, they'll take after you, physically but also in their mannerism and attitude (and in our culture the family name is very important, so having a boy means allowing your name to carry on to the next generation) and so, the memory of you is kept alive through your children; i.e. you're immortal :-P All this seems unrelated to our topic here, but in fact, it is not because the whole point is to explain to you that no matter how hard you fight it, ultimately you will do like your parents did. And what did your parents do? They decided that getting you a Rubik's Cube would mean PEACE. Occupy that child for as long as possible! Well now it's your turn to suffer children's nagging... But also your turn to occupy them with their own Rubik! Ah, isn't life beautiful? Doesn't this entire existence seem so much fairer now?
Your kids' torture tool is not a cube, it's a bubble...
Different shape, same anguish! :-)
Rubik's cube inventor unveils testing 360 puzzle
Rubik's 360 will hit UK stores next week and promises to be just as challenging as its predecessor
Haroon Siddique
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 7 July 2009 12.24 BST
Almost 30 years after the Rubik's cube led many to a fit of pique and sleepless nights, its inventor is back with a new puzzle that promises to prove just as testing.
The Rubik's 360 will be launched in the UK next week and Erno Rubik hopes it can replicate the success of the cube, which has sold more than 350m units since its 1980 launch and remains the world's fastest-selling toy.
The puzzle is based on similar principles to the cube, with the objective being to steer six coloured balls inside a sphere into their respective home slots.
"I feel that the Rubik's 360 is one of the most innovative and exciting puzzles we've developed since the cube – adopting elements of my original design, challenging the solver to use skill, dexterity and logic," said the notoriously reclusive Rubik.
David Hedley Jones, senior vice-president of the Rubik's brand, said that, like the fiendishly difficult but addictive cube, the 360 looks like it should be quite easy. "But it is incredibly complicated. There are some really cunning tricks to it," he said.
It is the 64-year-old Hungarian inventor's first new puzzle for almost 20 years and, according to Rubik's, the level of pre-orders has already left stocks low.
It will be officially launched at Hamleys on 15 July and the London toy store said the 360, priced at £18, was the most popular item on its website, with thousands of inquiries received.
The Rubik's cube was invented in 1974 and its popularity exploded when it was exported from Hungary in 1980. The name entered the Oxford English Dictionary after just two years and the toy is a permanent exhibit in New York's Museum of Modern Art. It still has a cult following and 15m were sold last year.
While Rubik's is keen for the 360 to follow in the footsteps of the cube in terms of sales – it is already being touted as a Christmas bestseller – the new puzzle has fallen foul of one of the problems that afflicted its predecessor: fakes. Rubik's has warned customers to beware of copies after a spate of imitations appeared on eBay.
But unlike in the old days, we now have access to a wealth of information... On the net! This time, I skipped Google and directly hit YouTube with my fatidic question:
How to solve a Rubik's Cube?
Now... Waiting for the 360 "how to" guide on YouTube...
No comments:
Post a Comment