Picture maze
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A picture maze is a maze puzzle that forms a picture when solved the same as a traditional maze.
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[edit] Rules
Picture mazes require no special rules or learning and rules are very simple:
- Draw a path from the entrance to exit of the puzzle, avoiding the dead ends
- Fill the squares along the path to reveal the hidden picture
It is interesting to note that because of two rules, it is far more simpler to reverse the process to solve this puzzle. Starting at a dead end, the path is filled until it reaches an intersection with three or more paths connecting to it. This process is repeated until all dead end paths are filled, often showing the shortest path. On larger pieces, this is the only way to solve as there are too many possible, but incorrect paths and chance of finding the correct path based on intuition, logic or simple luck is almost nonexistent.
[edit] History
The original concept of picture mazes was invented in Japan sometime before 1986. Since then manually created picture mazes became popular in Japanese puzzle magazines published by Gakken, Nikoli Nikoli, Sun and other Japanese publishers.
[edit] Computer algorithm picture mazes
Using computer algorithms picture mazes can be created at different difficulty levels by controlling the length and density of the false paths. There are picture mazes in various sizes, from small mazes of 25x25 and up to colossal poster mazes of 200x200.
