If you’ve mastered the Rubik’s Cube, the new X-Cube from Moving Parts LLC should keep you busy for a while. With over 13 quintillion times more permutations than the original 3x3x3 Rubik’s Cube, this 3x3x5 puzzle offers a whole new level of challenge in twisting logic puzzles.
The X-Cube was invented in 2012 by Dane Christianson while he was a student at the Illinois Institute of Technology. His proof of concept puzzle was 3-D printed as a prelude to a successful Kickstarter campaign in June 2013. In December of the same year, the X-Cube began hitting toy shelves.
While the original Rubik’s Cube has 21 moving parts, the additional faces that Christianson added to the X-Cube more than doubles that number to 52. Despite the increase in size and complexity, the X-Cube retains the same sticker-based, six-color palette of the original.
The X-Cube checks in at $31.99 USD and is available for a variety of online resellers. If you have access to a 3D printer and a bit of moxie, you can even print your own X-Cube, via a link to an open-source file of the puzzle posted on the Moving Parts website.
The company has also recently announced the X-2, a next-gen X-Cube that is scheduled for availability later this year.