The puzzle design must be first manufactured or otherwise made public no earlier than two years before the competition: June 2024 - June 2026. In this context, "design" refers to both the puzzle's operation and its physical appearance.
The puzzle must be a new design, or an inventive new application of a known principle.
Each entry must be submitted by the actual designer (or designers) of the puzzle. Up to three entries are allowed from the same designer (including co-designed entries).
Anyone can participate with any qualifying design, regardless of Puzzle Party affiliation. The designer need not be a Puzzle Party participant. Additionally, the puzzle does not need to be part of the Exchange, nor does being in the Exchange necessarily qualify or disqualify a design. Participation in the Nob Yoshigahara Puzzle Design Competition ("the Competition") does not entitle the designer to an Puzzle Party invitation.
All commonly recognized classes of mechanical puzzles are eligible for the Competition. This includes: Put-Together, Take-Apart, Interlocking, Disentanglement, Sequential Movement, Dexterity, Vessels, Vanish, Folding, and Impossible Objects.
If you are
planning to submit a puzzle design, please send advance email to
as early as possible,
so that we know to expect your entry.
A complete entry, must be received no later than
April 15, 2026 (approximately two months
prior to the Puzzle Party). The entry must include the following:
2 complete, working versions of the
puzzle - Prototypes are acceptable, but you should recognize
that some judges may consider finished quality as significant. Puzzles may come from the designer or borrowed from other
collections.
A detailed
description - Use the online Entry
Form to provide the following information for each entry:
Puzzle Name
Designer
your name
e-mail address (for all official communication)
full postal mailing address and phone number (for returning your puzzles)
Manufacturer
Date of design
Date of first public disclosure or manufacture
Materials used
Goal/problem statement
Solution (maximum one page; include images or drawings if needed), in a form suitable for immediate publication
Puzzle classification
Entry fee - Nonrefundable US$60 per design entered. PayPal is recommended, and should be sent to design@puzzleparty.org, adding 3% from inside the US, or adding 4% from outside the US. Please include a note indicating your name and the name of the puzzle(s) entered.
US bank checks are also accepted; please make US$ checks (or money order) payable to the International Puzzle Collectors Association. Please do not send cash.
Optional
information:
Buyer's
Guide: instructions for how collectors can purchase your puzzle
after the Puzzle Party. This information can include one email address, one URL, along with pricing and similar useful information.
Slocum Puzzle Museum: Please indicate your interest in donating or selling your puzzle entry to the Slocum Puzzle Foundation for the permanent collection at the Lilly Library/Slocum Puzzle Museum.
Other
descriptive information is welcome, including the relevant history,
motivation, construction process, recommendation on how to present puzzle
during judging, etc. However, please note that this information may be
reduced or not included in the official judging guide.
Submit your entry
in four parts:
Complete the Online Entry Form (by April 15). Any
additional information (such as solution images) should be
submitted via email to
.
Send the
entry fee (to be received by April 15):
Send entry fee via PayPal to
.
If you desire to send a USD check or money order, please send
email to
for further instructions.
Send the
first puzzle to the Design Competition chair (to be received by April 15):
Nick Baxter/Puzzle Design Competition
801 Newhall Road
Hillsborough, CA 94010
USA
Although puzzles shipped to the USA are traditionally duty-free (US Customs
Service Harmonized Tariff Schedule, #9503.60.20.00), current tariff rules are subject to change, and a reciprocal duty is possible depending on source declared status/value.
Send the second copy of
the puzzle to the Design Competition European coordinator (to be received by April 15):
Louis Coolen
Provencehof 4
5627 HA Eindhoven
Netherlands
Note: Design Competition (Attn: Designer's Name)
Shipments to the EU are subject to duty and VAT, depending on declared status/value.
If puzzles are send by someone other than the designer, please include the designer's name on the package so that we can correctly identify the entry.
The puzzles
will be returned after the Competition; all other portions of the submission
will be retained by the Competition (unless alternative arrangements are agreed to).
Shipping
The delivery of puzzles to the competition are the responsibility of the entrant, including all costs, proper working condition, and timely arrival. Any tariffs, duty, VAT, etc. paid by the Competition may be invoiced back to the entrant.
For puzzle returns, entrants who request special mail services, or shipments considered as oversized, must pay the cost of additional/excessive postage fees. Any prepaid duty, tariff, or VAT is also the respnsibility of the entrant.
The Competition is not responsible for puzzles lost or damaged during transit.
General
The names of the designers will not be revealed until the announcement of awards. This is a preference of the Competition and judges, and should also be observed to the extent possible by the participants. Any undue promotion of competition participation (campaigning, etc.) will be considered a breach of rules and entries subject to disqualification.
Each participant understands that the puzzles will be subjected to hands-on use during the judging process. Reasonable care will be taken by the organizers to prevent damage, but neither the Competition, the Puzzle Party organizers, nor the Puzzle Party participants will be liable for any damage or loss due to such use. In case of minor damage, routine repairs will be attempted.
It is possible that the Competition may perform a first round of judging prior to public announcement of the entrants, especially when more designs are submitted than can reasonably be judged by the jury and by the IPP voters. As a courtesy, entries eliminated in this round will not by publicized, nor will they appear in the competition guides. Based on historical trends, the jury will not attempt to reduce the number of published entries to less than 60.
Photos and descriptions of the entries may appear in publications about or promoting the competition, including but not limited to the IPP Souvenir Booklet, CFF, and the Design Competition web site.
All published materials will be edited for content and consistency of format across all entries.
Any issues not covered by the existing rules will be resolved by the Competition at its discretion. Please contact
with any questions.
These
rules go into effect on October 15, 2025, and are considered unofficial and
subject to change until Jan 1 2026. Any
substantial rule changes made after Jan 1, 2026 will be noted
below.
Privacy Policy
All puzzle information entered, except for solutions, is considered public information and free to disclose publicly by the Competition. Solutions will be printed and made available to the jury and voters, but will not be reproduced publicly by the Competition in electronic form.
Contact information will be held private, unless included as part of the optional buyer's guide information.
Only information voluntarily submitted via the entry form or subsequent communication is collected, and is retained for historical records.
It is required to agree to this policy to facilitate the full operation of the Competition, including promotion, presentations, judging, shipments, etc.