More Than Meets the Eye

So I have this long love affair with twisty puzzles. I love that they are tactile. I love that they can be messed up without being broken. I love to try new things with them. There is another type of puzzle that I have never gotten into and that is what is know as a pull-apart puzzle. I don't like thinking that a piece might go missing and destroy my fun, plus most of them rely on a type of gimmick, by which I mean you find out the big secret and then the puzzle isn't a challenge anymore; oh this panel slides. Oh this needs to twist this way. Oh I need to set it down and spin it.

Along these lines a great twisty puzzle is an appropriately complex transformer. It has a clearly defined end-goal, it will keep your hands and your mind busy for a few minutes, and they are usually robust enough that you don't need to worry about breaking them. I have an ever-growing collection. I really lucked out in that my younger brother is kind of addicted so I get to check them all out as they are released and then I just pick and choose the most intriguing ones for myself. Among my collection are most of the Alternator line which was a model quality line which was targeted to adult collectors and not children. They each take 10-15 minutes to transform. If you haven't messed with a particular model for a long time it can take half an hour. The masterpiece lineup is also excellent and extremely accurate to their cartoon examples.

Many people might automatically assume that transformers are only for kids but the truth is that there are many that would be challenging and fun for adults as well.