There's a new version of the Rubik's Cube on its way. The Rubik's 360 is a spherical puzzle that involves moving three colored balls from an inner sphere through a middle sphere to matching colored slots on an outer spehere.
Now the reclusive Hungarian inventor hopes to recreate the buzz of Rubik's Cube with his new game, featuring six balls trapped within three transparent plastic spheres.
The puzzle, shown to the Sunday Telegraph ahead of its unveiling at a toy industry fair in Germany on February 5, confronts users with the same frustrating challenge – a task that is simple to understand, with only one possible solution, yet extremely difficult to execute.
Players must get the coloured balls from an inner sphere into matching slots on the outer sphere by shaking them through a middle sphere that has only two holes.
It will be tough for the Rubik's 360 to generate the long-lasting interest the original Cube has created. Over 350 million Rubik's Cubes have been sold worldwide. There's also 38,000 Rubik's Cube videos on YouTube.
Entertainment Earth's product page says the Rubik's 360 is coming out in July, 2009.
Erno Rubik talked to Time about how he designed the original Rubik's Cube. He also shows off the latest version of the toy he created, the Rubik's 360.
