Tower Cube (2x2x3)

Tower Cube (2x2x3) — a 2x2x3 version of the original Rubik’s Cube, invented in the early 2000s. Mass production of this pocket-sized toy began in 2009; its mechanism is similar to that of the Rubik’s Cube, but when the side faces are rotated a quarter turn, the puzzle locks until a full half-turn is completed. This puzzle is part of the 2x2xN parallelepiped puzzle series. It consists of eight corner pieces and four edge pieces. The small number of pieces results in no more than 200,000 possible combinations, each solvable in fourteen moves or fewer. It is considered a fairly simple puzzle. The unofficial world record for solving it is 1.43 seconds.

How to play?

Rotate the puzzle’s faces to move the corner and edge pieces. Keep in mind a feature of the mechanism: rotating the side faces a quarter turn locks the puzzle until a full half-turn is completed. Solve it so that each face of the tower is a single color. Use the fewest number of moves to achieve the best results in this simple yet interesting variation of the Rubik’s Cube.