Magic Cube Alternatives and Derivatives The Rubik's Cube, commonly known as the Magic Cube, is a 3D combination puzzle that has been popular for decades. While the original cube has captivated millions of people around the world, there are also several alternative versions and derivatives that offer new and exciting challenges. One popular alternative to the Rubik's Cube is the Pyraminx. This pyramid-shaped puzzle is solved by twisting and turning its four corners, with the goal of aligning colors on each face. The Pyraminx is often considered easier to solve than the Rubik's Cube, making it a great option for beginners or those looking for a different challenge. Another popular alternative is the Megaminx, which is a dodecahedron-shaped puzzle with 12 faces.
Do you enjoy ninjas? Do you like stupid, stupid movies? How about demons and monsters and gratuitous cartoon violence? If any of this sounds appealing, then might I recommend like literally 50% of all anime movies made from the mid-’80s up until, I guess, right now? But specifically, for present purposes, might I recommend Blood Reign: Curse of the Yoma (aka Yoma: Curse of the Undead, aka Dumbest Pantless Ninja Demonfest [I may have made one of those titles up])?
But specifically, for present purposes, might I recommend Blood Reign Curse of the Yoma aka Yoma Curse of the Undead , aka Dumbest Pantless Ninja Demonfest I may have made one of those titles up. This, and the Sci Fi Channel before its inane SyFy rebranding running the same handful of films every week in its Saturday Anime block, pretty much guaranteed that a generation of impressionable young American nerds like me would waste even more of their precious youths.
Another popular alternative is the Megaminx, which is a dodecahedron-shaped puzzle with 12 faces. Like the Rubik's Cube, the Megaminx requires players to align colors on each face by twisting and turning its sides. The Megaminx is often seen as a more complex version of the Rubik's Cube, offering a greater challenge to puzzle enthusiasts.
Retro Review: Blood Reign: Curse of the Yoma (1989)
Do you enjoy ninjas? Do you like stupid, stupid movies? How about demons and monsters and gratuitous cartoon violence? If any of this sounds appealing, then might I recommend like literally 50% of all anime movies made from the mid-’80s up until, I guess, right now? But specifically, for present purposes, might I recommend Blood Reign: Curse of the Yoma (aka Yoma: Curse of the Undead, aka Dumbest Pantless Ninja Demonfest [I may have made one of those titles up])?
I lost track of my punctuation for a second there. I think I’m okay, though. Onward.
Yoma is the story of Hikage, a young shinobi who wears a very short kimono and excels at killing things. Hikage’s childhood friend Marou (also a ninja), after participating in a horrible bloody battle, goes nuts and attacks Hikage and runs off. The famous Takeda Clan orders Hikage to pursue Marou, who apparently has turned traitor. When he catches up with his former friend, Hikage learns that Marou has somehow turned into a super-powerful demonic creature (yoma) who can control all the other super-powerful demonic creatures, like, ever. So pretty much there’s killing of said demons, some close calls, a couple of bitchin’ guy-gets-cut-but-doesn’t-realize-it-for-five-seconds/wicked blood-spray things, and, you know. It’s anime ninjas and demons.
The narrative is virtually nonexistent (I never get tired of typing that). Really, it’s a ninja who has to kill his buddy who’s now a demon, and also there’s a couple of love interests, and some giant spiders, and like a demon horse thing. There seem to be some broad allusions to Japanese folklore, but nothing really specific.
Let me be very clear: this movie sucks (actually it’s an OVA, or original video animation for you otaku out there–a two-part straight-to-video release). It was made in the late ’80s but looks much older: it has some sloppy animation work and bad color in places, and just doesn’t make a lot of sense. The skeletal narrative leaves much to be desired in terms of caring about any of the characters. There’s really not much here to like.
And yet I love this piece of crap.
It’s just one of those. It’s definitely so-bad-it’s-good. It defines so-bad-it’s-good. It has ninjas killing demons, for crap’s sake. There are gross disembowelments (disembowelings?) and corpse-monsters and claw-blades and it really makes the giddy little ninja fanboy in me want to live in feudal Japan (despite the rest of me knowing what a bullshit fictionalized pop culture conception I actually have of feudal Japan).
Yes, it is delicious. Shut up.
If you’re a child of the 1980s like myself, you may remember the gathering storm of anime marketed toward adult audiences that was percolating on the edges of mainstream US video-store awareness. Thanks in large part to companies like A.D. Vision and US Manga Corps, horror and dark sci-fi anime like the classics Vampire Hunter D, Demon City Shinjuku, and the less-than-classic Yoma were floating around the shelves of seedy video rental stores by the early ’90s. This, and the Sci Fi Channel (before its inane “SyFy” rebranding) running the same handful of films every week in its Saturday Anime block, pretty much guaranteed that a generation of impressionable young American nerds like me would waste even more of their precious youths. What was I talking about?
Yoma‘s one of those films that you might not appreciate if you don’t already remember hating it from your youth. If that doesn’t make sense, shut up, yes it does. Oddly, the crappy animation and character design, the gaping plot holes, and the gleeful, cartoonish gore fill me with a bizarre sense of nostalgia for that most neon and bowl-cut-y and nonsensical of decades, the 1990s. Remember animated GIFs and Geocities? Yeah, those were the days. Yoma is like that. It’s like Geocities. And bowl cuts.
COME HUMAN TO MY LAIR, WHERE WE SHALL PARTAKE OF DEL AMITRI AND THE FORBIDDEN GIN BLOSSOMS.
Yoma is the story of Hikage, a young shinobi who wears a very short kimono and excels at killing things. Hikage’s childhood friend Marou (also a ninja), after participating in a horrible bloody battle, goes nuts and attacks Hikage and runs off. The famous Takeda Clan orders Hikage to pursue Marou, who apparently has turned traitor. When he catches up with his former friend, Hikage learns that Marou has somehow turned into a super-powerful demonic creature (yoma) who can control all the other super-powerful demonic creatures, like, ever. So pretty much there’s killing of said demons, some close calls, a couple of bitchin’ guy-gets-cut-but-doesn’t-realize-it-for-five-seconds/wicked blood-spray things, and, you know. It’s anime ninjas and demons.
In addition to these alternatives, there are also many derivatives of the Rubik's Cube that offer unique twists on the original puzzle. Some examples include the Mirror Cube, which features differently shaped pieces that still need to be aligned, and the Square-1, which requires players to manipulate its square-shaped pieces to solve. These alternatives and derivatives provide puzzle enthusiasts with new challenges and variations on the classic Rubik's Cube. Whether you're a beginner looking for an easier puzzle or an experienced solver seeking a greater challenge, these options offer something for everyone. So grab one of these puzzles and start twisting and turning your way to a satisfying solution!.
Reviews for "Go Beyond Rubik's: Exploring Lesser-Known Magic Cube Alternatives"
- Jane Smith - 2/5 - I was really disappointed with this book. I was expecting it to provide new and innovative alternative solutions to the classic Rubik's Cube, but it fell short. The book mostly covered basic modifications and variations that I was already aware of. I was looking for something more challenging and unique. Overall, I found this book to be quite repetitive and lacking in fresh ideas.
- John Doe - 2/5 - As an avid Rubik's Cube collector, I was excited to explore the world of magic cube alternatives and derivatives. However, this book did not meet my expectations. It mainly focused on variations that didn't offer much of a challenge or novelty factor. I was hoping to discover new and creative designs, but the majority of the content felt like a rehash of what I already knew. I was left wanting more and would not recommend this book to serious puzzle enthusiasts.
- Sarah Thompson - 3/5 - While this book did provide some interesting alternatives to the Rubik's Cube, I found the explanations to be lacking in clarity. The instructions could have been more detailed and easier to follow. Additionally, some of the modifications seemed unnecessary and didn't add any significant value to the puzzle-solving experience. Overall, I felt that this book had potential but could have been executed better in terms of presentation and content organization.
- Alex Johnson - 1/5 - I found "Magic cube alternatives and derivatives" to be a complete waste of time. The book simply rehashed well-known variations of the Rubik's Cube without providing any new insights or contributions to the field. The author seemed to be more interested in filling pages than providing valuable content. I would not recommend this book to anyone seeking original and engaging magic cube alternatives.