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Rows Garden #61

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ROWS GARDEN 61 — HARDER

ROWS GARDEN 61 — EASIER

Rows Garden 61 Harder — Solution

Rows Garden 61 Easier — Solution

I mentioned Trip Payne’s new metapuzzle suite that you can sign up for via Kickstarter (it closes on Wednesday), and I’d also like to mention Patrick Blindauer’s third puzzle suite that he’s done, which you can sign up for by visiting his site. I’ve had the pleasure of doing Patrick’s first two puzzle suites, and they were nothing short of brilliant, especially last year’s, which I never fully solved but marveled at once the answer was revealed. Kind of like his puzzle “Little White Lie” that he did for Fireball last week — Patrick’s puzzles have that “aha” moment often piled on top of various other “aha” moments. One of the most innovative constructors currently around, for sure. And you have until the middle of February to be in the running for some prizes, so be sure to sign up if you already haven’t.

I’m in the preliminary phase of planning a puzzle suite myself, but I didn’t want to step on Patrick or Trip’s toes, so expect it more towards the middle of the year. I have a general concept but I’m still hashing out the particulars. Stay tuned!

1 Comment

Andrew J. Ries, January 31st 2012 | Tags: , , ,
Posted in Puzzles, Rows Garden

Rows Garden #60

ROWS GARDEN 60 — HARDER

ROWS GARDEN 60 — EASIER

Rows Garden 60 Harder — Solution

Rows Garden 60 Easier — Solution

Thanks to all who gave their ideas for different puzzle types. There were multiple calls for Some Assembly Required, which is the one form that I’m the least familiar with. I think I’ve done one of those in my life — I rarely print-and-play puzzles anymore, and it’s a form that obviously requires it. I’ll definitely give a crack at constructing them, but don’t expect those for a while. Someone mentioned Riding the Waves, which is an awesome idea — the most Rows Garden-esque puzzle type, in my humble opinion. I clicked with those right away, so I might give that a try here pretty soon. Basically, stay tuned — I’ll fiddle with some of these various types and keep honing my cryptic skills, and I’ll hopefully post some of my efforts here soon.

Meanwhile, I hope you all caught Patrick Berry’s beautiful Rows Garden in this Saturday’s Wall Street Journal. If not, get to it! And I’d like to plug Trip Payne’s upcoming meta puzzle suite, which you can sign up for via Kickstarter. Trip’s already raised enough money to fund the project, so it’s definitely a go, and if you know any of Trip’s work (he’s got three Rows Gardens on his site, Triple Play Puzzles), you know you’re in for a fun ride.

Enjoy #60! Can’t believe we made it this far.

3 Comments

Andrew J. Ries, January 24th 2012 | Tags: , , ,
Posted in Puzzles, Rows Garden

Rows Garden #59

ROWS GARDEN 59 — HARDER

ROWS GARDEN 59 — EASIER

Rows Garden 59 Harder — Solution

Rows Garden 59 Easier — Solution

Not that I’m tired of cranking out Rows Gardens here, but I am thinking of adding a little variety here at Aries Puzzles. As far as what other puzzle forms I’d delve into, who better to ask than my loyal fan base? Just a year ago I posted on this site that I was still struggling to “click” with cryptic crosswords; some of you commented to the tune of “hang in there, you’ll get it soon enough,” and sure enough, I’ve grown to love them. Other than the standard dailies and weeklies that I solve, cryptics are all I get my hands on nowadays. So naturally I’ve tried my hand at constructing them, and though my first full attempt was a good try, I couldn’t in good humor post such a test-drive here. I’ll continue to hone my skills, and you’re sure to see some cryptics here in the future.

That being said, any other suggestions as to other puzzle types you’d like offered here? Feel free to opine in the comments or shoot me an e-mail. Marching Bands are fun to solve, though I haven’t attempted to construct one as of yet and wouldn’t be able to say whether they’re a bear to build or not. Standard American-style crosswords are awesome, of course, but there are plenty of others offering those. What do you say? Of course, I could implement all of these types in one sense or another.

Don’t worry about seeing Rows Gardens going away. They’ll still be the featured format here, but instead of a constant gig, they may get a breather or two in the future. So let me know what formats people are craving and I’ll see where we stand next week. For now, enjoy #59!

11 Comments

Andrew J. Ries, January 17th 2012 | Tags: ,
Posted in Puzzles, Rows Garden
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