Infinite Galaxy Puzzle 2

Have you ever done a puzzle that has no beginning or end? Where you don’t know up from down? Get lost in the Infinite Galaxy Puzzle…2

The Infinite Galaxy Puzzle 2 is a new jigsaw puzzle inspired by tiling mathematical spaces like the Möbius Strip, Klein Bottle and Real Projective Plane. In 2016, we released the first Infinite Galaxy Puzzle, a new type of jigsaw puzzle with that tiles with no fixed shape, no starting point, and no edges. Now we are releasing version 2 which features a new topological twist, a new image of our galaxy and our intertwining maze-style puzzle pieces. This dense piece style makes the already mind bending puzzle even more of a challenge. With the new Infinite Galaxy Puzzle 2, we are also releasing Maze Infinity Puzzles ™ with a beautiful wood finish in natural, black and turquoise finishes.

Our puzzles are about bringing back the artistry and playfulness of traditional hand cut puzzles while exploring the possibilities of new technology. A part of that artisan tradition are “trick” puzzles, puzzles that can be assembled in multiple ways often to create a witty pun or interesting transformation. Our Infinity Puzzles ™ build on that tradition with a new mathematical twist that would be almost impossible with hand cutting.

the Infinite Galaxy Puzzle 2

a puzzle that tiles infinitely across both sides, based on the real projective plane

Inspired by non-orientable topological spaces, this 2-sided puzzles’ image wraps continuously from the front to the back, meaning there is no top and bottom side! Pieces from one side flip over and attach to the opposite side. The first Infinite Galaxy Puzzle was based on the Klein Bottle. The second Infinite Galaxy Puzzle is based on the real projective plane, the Klein Bottle’s less popular, but no less interesting, cousin.

This shape can be most easily understood from it’s fundamental polygon, a diagram showing how the surface is connected. The left side is connected to the right and the top to the bottom, but both flip when they connect. The original galaxy puzzle only flips in one direction. This may sound like a simple change, but it dramatically transforms how the puzzle plays out. For instance, the corners form a kind of singularity, and connect to themselves with a 180 degree rotation and no flip.

Infinite Galaxy Puzzle 2 ($120, 11 x 7 inches) has 236 pieces, nearly twice its predecessor. The art, titled Westerlund 2, is from the NASA/ESA Hubble Telescope and depicts a young star cluster in the Milky Way.

the Maze Infinity Puzzle ™

a small yet challenging puzzle based on a torus

The Maze Infinity Puzzle ™ is a challenging wood puzzle that tiles in the plane. This means that any piece on the bottom can be moved to the top and a piece on the right can be moved to the left. Multiple copies of the puzzle can be combined in different colors to create abstract patterns and shapes. Topologically, we can say this is equivalent to a torus. It comes in two sizes, a 5×5” ($27, 63 pieces) and 8×8” ($65, 196 pieces), and a dramatic new black finish.

This puzzle is extra challenging as it has no image or defined shape to guide assembly. Multiple infinity puzzles™ can be combined to create a larger continuous puzzle. The image below shows some of the creative combinations possible with two infinity puzzles™ of different colors ($50, for two).

The Maze cut style is our newest puzzle generating system, made for our Geode puzzles. The extreme intertwining and high piece count make Maze our hardest cut style to date. The pieces are grown in a simulation of elastic rods. The edges grow, lengthening, until they collide, pushing each other into contorted shapes.

Ready to take on the challenge? shop our entire line of generative jigsaw puzzles here.