How many puzzles of 3 boxes are there? Probably several hundred. To carry out a selection in this jungle of puzzles, I have classified them into two big groups: "compact" puzzles, and puzzles with "rooms". I define a "room" as a structure minimum of 6 floors, connected to the rest of the puzzle for one or more passage ways (non-adjacent). For example, the following puzzle has 3 rooms (A, B, C):
This definition is operational only, and has no heuristic claim.
I publish below which are, in my opinion, the most beautiful puzzles of three boxes (with rooms), in chronological order. All are very simple, and with few exceptions, relatively easy.
Author: Hiroshi Yamamoto + Hirohiko Nakamiya
Title: Scratch levels #3
Date: c. August 2000
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 111/37
Excellent!
Incredible and complex puzzle. Are required 104 moves to place the first box...
Author: Marcis Berzins
Title: Magic Sokoban 5 #12
Date: September 2013
Website:
mb13.allalla.com/csoko/
sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 2.5
Best moves/pushes: 89/33
Extremely simple rotary puzzle.
Author: Přemysl Zíka
Title: Secundus gradus ad Olympo #3
Date: December 2013
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 3 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 66/29
Simple windmill.
Author: Přemysl Zíka
Title: Secundus gradus ad Olympo #4
Date: December 2013
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 4 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 139/49
Similar to the Magic Sokoban 5 #23, of Marcis Berzins, but with only three boxes.
Note: These puzzles are not included in the downloadable file
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Author: Shaggath + Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 6 #44
Comment: based on Mulholland 2 #56
Date: June 2015
Difficulty: 5
Best moves/pushes: 178/35
- Choi In-Seok
You can download all puzzles here:
Author: Takashi Iwasaki
Title: iwasaki 01
Date: c. June 1998
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 213/59
Excellent rotary puzzle.
Title: iwasaki 01
Date: c. June 1998
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 213/59
Excellent rotary puzzle.
Author: Hiroki Kanou
Title: No. 1
Comment: posted in "Twink's BANSOKO Page"
Date: c. August 1998
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 122/25
One of my favorite puzzles from always. Rotary puzzle, in which as usual in this type of puzzles, the greatest difficulty is to place the first box.
Title: No. 1
Comment: posted in "Twink's BANSOKO Page"
Date: c. August 1998
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 122/25
One of my favorite puzzles from always. Rotary puzzle, in which as usual in this type of puzzles, the greatest difficulty is to place the first box.
Author: monry
Title: FirstStep 323
Date: c. April 1999
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 129/27
Rotary puzzle, similar to the previous of Kanou.
Title: FirstStep 323
Date: c. April 1999
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 129/27
Rotary puzzle, similar to the previous of Kanou.
Author: monry
Title: FirstStep 328
Date: c. April 1999
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 75/24
Beautiful line! Structure with two rooms. Absolutely classic!
Title: FirstStep 328
Date: c. April 1999
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 75/24
Beautiful line! Structure with two rooms. Absolutely classic!
Author: unknown
Title: Souko Normal 05
Date: October 1999
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 141/49
I love this simple puzzle of unknown author! It's a recurring theme, repeatedly treated by many authors, but this one is my favorite.
This puzzle comes from the Japanese game 倉庫 ("Souko", 1999, for Windows), with 48 puzzles, all easy but very interesting.
Title: Souko Normal 05
Date: October 1999
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 141/49
I love this simple puzzle of unknown author! It's a recurring theme, repeatedly treated by many authors, but this one is my favorite.
This puzzle comes from the Japanese game 倉庫 ("Souko", 1999, for Windows), with 48 puzzles, all easy but very interesting.
Author: David W. Skinner
Title: Microban #124
Date: April 2000
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 245/39
An early application to Sokoban of the theory of the "Turing machine".
Title: Microban #124
Date: April 2000
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 245/39
An early application to Sokoban of the theory of the "Turing machine".
Author: Hiroshi Yamamoto
Title: Scratch levels #1
Date: c. August 2000
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 117/40
Title: Scratch levels #1
Date: c. August 2000
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 117/40
Nice rooms exchange, plus the addition of a simple problem of storage.
Title: Scratch levels #3
Date: c. August 2000
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 111/37
Excellent!
Author: François Marques
Title: Novoban #39 Try ban 8
Date: February 2001
Website: sokoban.online.fr/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 105/43
Classic theme to move boxes from one room to another (see the previous Souko Normal 05 of author unknown, Hiroshi Yamamoto scratch #1, and Minicosmos #20 by Aymeric du Peloux, below).
Title: Novoban #39 Try ban 8
Date: February 2001
Website: sokoban.online.fr/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 105/43
Classic theme to move boxes from one room to another (see the previous Souko Normal 05 of author unknown, Hiroshi Yamamoto scratch #1, and Minicosmos #20 by Aymeric du Peloux, below).
Author: François Marques
Title: Novoban #48 Try ban 4
Date: February 2001
Website: sokoban.online.fr/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/43
Another nice rooms exchange.
Title: Novoban #48 Try ban 4
Date: February 2001
Website: sokoban.online.fr/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/43
Another nice rooms exchange.
Author: Aymeric du Peloux
Title: Minicosmos #18 Escaliers (Stairs)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 110/27
Classic stairs... with the added difficulty of goals arranged alternately.
Title: Minicosmos #18 Escaliers (Stairs)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 110/27
Classic stairs... with the added difficulty of goals arranged alternately.
Author: Aymeric du Peloux
Title: Minicosmos #20 Petits sabliers (Little Sand glasses)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 112/41
Classic theme similar to previous Souko Normal 05, treated masterfully in this puzzle by Aymeric.
Title: Minicosmos #20 Petits sabliers (Little Sand glasses)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 112/41
Classic theme similar to previous Souko Normal 05, treated masterfully in this puzzle by Aymeric.
Author: Aymeric du Peloux
Title: Minicosmos #28 Petits manèges (Little horse-gear)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 189/38
Another rotary puzzle, but slightly more difficult than the previous ones (Serg Belyaev has a virtually identical puzzle: see svb503).
Title: Minicosmos #28 Petits manèges (Little horse-gear)
Date: August 2001
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 189/38
Another rotary puzzle, but slightly more difficult than the previous ones (Serg Belyaev has a virtually identical puzzle: see svb503).
Author: David W. Skinner + Jordi Domènech
Title: Microban II variations #14
Comment: based on Microban II #46
Date: April 2002. Remodel: May 2012
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 111/36
Rotary puzzle with alternate goals.
Title: Microban II variations #14
Comment: based on Microban II #46
Date: April 2002. Remodel: May 2012
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 111/36
Rotary puzzle with alternate goals.
Author: Serg Belyaev
Title: #42
Date: August 2002
Website: svb-sokoban.narod.ru/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 51/14
Alternate goals. What box I place first?... and then...!!?
Title: #42
Date: August 2002
Website: svb-sokoban.narod.ru/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 51/14
Alternate goals. What box I place first?... and then...!!?
Author: François Marques
Title: LOMA 03-01
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 93/19
Easy and beautiful line in two rooms.
Title: LOMA 03-01
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 93/19
Easy and beautiful line in two rooms.
Author: François Marques
Title: LOMA 04-03
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 125/26
Another line with alternate goals.
Title: LOMA 04-03
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 125/26
Another line with alternate goals.
Author: Arpad Fekete
Title: LOMA 03-08
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 131/27
Great puzzle, one of the best of the LOMA series.
Title: LOMA 03-08
Date: c. 2002
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 131/27
Great puzzle, one of the best of the LOMA series.
Author: Aymeric du Peloux
Title: Cosmonotes #1
Date: c. June 2003
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4.5 (A. du P.)
Best moves/pushes: 144/46
Title: Cosmonotes #1
Date: c. June 2003
Website: www.onlinespiele-sammlung.de/sokoban/sokobangames/nabokos/
Difficulty: 4.5 (A. du P.)
Best moves/pushes: 144/46
Incredible and complex puzzle. Are required 104 moves to place the first box...
Author: Roger Delaporte
Title: LOMA 04-10
Date: c. October 2004
Website: roger.delaporte.free.fr/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 49/12
Simple and beautiful.
Title: LOMA 04-10
Date: c. October 2004
Website: roger.delaporte.free.fr/
Difficulty: 3
Best moves/pushes: 49/12
Simple and beautiful.
Author: Dries De Clercq
Title: 696 #36
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 188/40
Title: 696 #36
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 188/40
Alternate goals within a quasi-compact rotary structure. It is not difficult, but requires a lot of attention.
Author: Dries De Clercq
Title: 696 #262
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/34
Fun line, inside a cross-shaped rotary structure.
Title: 696 #262
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/34
Fun line, inside a cross-shaped rotary structure.
Author: Dries De Clercq
Title: 696 #278
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 149/41
Title: 696 #278
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 149/41
Fantastic! Very fun to solve.
Author: Dries De Clercq
Title: 696 #300
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 161/40
Title: 696 #300
Date: April 2005
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 161/40
Author: Dries De Clercq
Title: 696 #435 arr.
Date: April 2005
Note: map arranged by J.D.
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 195/49
Excellent! Perhaps one of the puzzles of three boxes more laborious to solve... 170 moves to place the first box!
Title: 696 #435 arr.
Date: April 2005
Note: map arranged by J.D.
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 195/49
Excellent! Perhaps one of the puzzles of three boxes more laborious to solve... 170 moves to place the first box!
Author: Martí Homs
Title: Homz Challenge #69
Date: 2007
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/2011/07/marti-homs.html
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 109/22
Simple look (two rooms connected by 2 passage ways), but surprisingly difficult.
Title: Homz Challenge #69
Date: 2007
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/2011/07/marti-homs.html
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 109/22
Simple look (two rooms connected by 2 passage ways), but surprisingly difficult.
Author: Martí Homs
Title: Homz Challenge #75
Date: 2007
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/2011/07/marti-homs.html
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/24
Interesting puzzle with goals arranged alternately.
Title: Homz Challenge #75
Date: 2007
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/2011/07/marti-homs.html
Difficulty: 4.5
Best moves/pushes: 106/24
Interesting puzzle with goals arranged alternately.
Author: David W. Skinner
Title: Microban III #11
Date: December 2009
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 173/50
Title: Microban III #11
Date: December 2009
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 173/50
Complex structure, but nice to solve.
Author: David W. Skinner + Jordi Domènech
Title: Microban III variations #27
Comment: based on Microban III #64 LOMA 1e
Date: December 2009. Remodel: May 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 89/37
Rooms exchange within a structure on stairs.
Title: Microban III variations #27
Comment: based on Microban III #64 LOMA 1e
Date: December 2009. Remodel: May 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 89/37
Rooms exchange within a structure on stairs.
Author: Shaggath
Title: V2010 #22
Date: December 2009
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 111/33
Seemingly simple puzzle, but unexpected difficulty.
Title: V2010 #22
Date: December 2009
Difficulty: 5.5
Best moves/pushes: 111/33
Seemingly simple puzzle, but unexpected difficulty.
Author: Evgeny Grigoriev + Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #26
Comment: based on grigr2001 #55
Date: April 2012
Website:
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #26
Comment: based on grigr2001 #55
Date: April 2012
Website:
grigr.narod.ru/
sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 93/15
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 93/15
Author: Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #36 Easy mini
Date: April 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 88/29
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #36 Easy mini
Date: April 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 88/29
Author: Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #46 Simple problem
Date: April 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 122/36
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #46 Simple problem
Date: April 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 122/36
Author: David Buchweitz + Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #72 Prison Break - mini
Date: April 2012
Website:
Title: Magic Sokoban 2 #72 Prison Break - mini
Date: April 2012
Website:
www.letslogic.com/
sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 203/50
Difficulty: 4
Best moves/pushes: 203/50
Author: monry + Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 3 #4 Homage to monry 2
Comment: based on FirstStep 104
Date: July 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 124/45
Title: Magic Sokoban 3 #4 Homage to monry 2
Comment: based on FirstStep 104
Date: July 2012
Website: sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 3.5
Best moves/pushes: 124/45
Author: Přemysl Zíka
Title: Primus gradus ad Olympo #13
Date: December 2012
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 3 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 161/61
Wonderful! My difficulty rating: 4.
Title: Primus gradus ad Olympo #13
Date: December 2012
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 3 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 161/61
Wonderful! My difficulty rating: 4.
Author: Přemysl Zíka
Title: Primus gradus ad Olympo #18
Date: December 2012
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 4.5 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 288/91
Fantastic rotary puzzle of round trip!
Title: Primus gradus ad Olympo #18
Date: December 2012
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 4.5 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 288/91
Fantastic rotary puzzle of round trip!
Title: Magic Sokoban 5 #12
Date: September 2013
Website:
mb13.allalla.com/csoko/
sokoban-jd.blogspot.com/p/all-my-sokoban-collections.html
Difficulty: 2.5
Best moves/pushes: 89/33
Extremely simple rotary puzzle.
Title: Secundus gradus ad Olympo #3
Date: December 2013
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 3 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 66/29
Simple windmill.
Title: Secundus gradus ad Olympo #4
Date: December 2013
Website: www.zusbreznice.cz/rozvrhy-zika-premysl-sokoban.cz
Difficulty: 4 (P.Z.)
Best moves/pushes: 139/49
Similar to the Magic Sokoban 5 #23, of Marcis Berzins, but with only three boxes.
New additions
Note: These puzzles are not included in the downloadable file
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# @$# ##
# *$. #
# # #
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Author: Shaggath + Jordi Domènech
Title: Magic Sokoban 6 #44
Comment: based on Mulholland 2 #56
Date: June 2015
Difficulty: 5
Best moves/pushes: 178/35
Other puzzles in 3 boxes:
- Choi In-Seok
My Sokoban #4
- Dries De Clercq
696 #37, 38, 255, 270, 279, 281, 346
Sokodries1 #23 Lobby 1, #24 Lobby 2
- Jordi Domènech
Miniatures - Part One (easy) #8
Magic Sokoban 2 #44
- Sven Egevad
SE 928, 1633
Level yasgood_22
- Arpad Fekete
LOMA 05-08
- Evgeny Grigoriev (GRIGoRusha)
grigr2001 #58 Mini zagadka
- Martí Homs
Homz Challenge #32, 36, 49, 68
- Victor Kindemans
LOMA 02-04, 04-05
- François Marques
Novoban #19
LOMA 02-01
- Ghislain Martin
SokoStation #82 ASYNCHRONE
- monry
First Step 313, 318, 326
- Yoshio Murase
handmade #48
- Aymeric du Peloux
Microcosmos #10
Nabokosmos #11
Minicosmos #6, 26, 30
LOMA 06-02
- František Pokorný
#69 Warm up
- Thomas Reinke
81 #2
- Sokoban Revenge
#272 (Yoshio Sakae)
- Dries De Clercq
696 #37, 38, 255, 270, 279, 281, 346
Sokodries1 #23 Lobby 1, #24 Lobby 2
- Jordi Domènech
Miniatures - Part One (easy) #8
Magic Sokoban 2 #44
- Sven Egevad
SE 928, 1633
Level yasgood_22
- Arpad Fekete
LOMA 05-08
- Evgeny Grigoriev (GRIGoRusha)
grigr2001 #58 Mini zagadka
- Martí Homs
Homz Challenge #32, 36, 49, 68
- Victor Kindemans
LOMA 02-04, 04-05
- François Marques
Novoban #19
LOMA 02-01
- Ghislain Martin
SokoStation #82 ASYNCHRONE
- monry
First Step 313, 318, 326
- Yoshio Murase
handmade #48
- Aymeric du Peloux
Microcosmos #10
Nabokosmos #11
Minicosmos #6, 26, 30
LOMA 06-02
- František Pokorný
#69 Warm up
- Thomas Reinke
81 #2
- Sokoban Revenge
#272 (Yoshio Sakae)
- Shaggath
V2010 #6, 37
- David W. Skinner
Microban #94, 96, 104
Microban II #37, 42, 59, 60
- Eric F. Tchong
Chuchubi 1 #71 In 3 minimal moves
- Přemysl Zíka
#49, 53, 55, 59, 66, 196
Primus gradus ad Olympo #9, 11, 15, 16, 17
V2010 #6, 37
- David W. Skinner
Microban #94, 96, 104
Microban II #37, 42, 59, 60
- Eric F. Tchong
Chuchubi 1 #71 In 3 minimal moves
- Přemysl Zíka
#49, 53, 55, 59, 66, 196
Primus gradus ad Olympo #9, 11, 15, 16, 17
