Tesseract Labyrinth: The Missing Axis

About Tesseract Labyrinth: The Missing Axis

Tesseract Labyrinth: The Missing Axis is a cable-routing maze in an abandoned museum of inventions. A hand-cranked dynamo sits at one end of the cable, exhibit lamps stand dark on the way, and a fuse box waits at the end. You steer the cable one square at a time, east, west, north or south, across the plan of the museum. Every square adds strain to the cable: a plain board a little, a creaking board more, a pane of glass floor most of all, and the whole run may carry only so much strain before it parts. The cable may cross the same square on another floor, but never the same square of the same floor twice.

The museum has three floors, and you do not steer them. That is the missing axis. A great clockwork lift turns the floors by itself, one position at every step the cable takes, in a pattern each room shows: cellar, gallery, attic, then round again, or a stuttering pattern that visits the gallery twice. The square your next step lands on is the square of whichever floor the lift brings round next, so the big plan on screen always shows the floor you are about to step onto and two small plans beside it show the floors after that. A square that is open now may be a display case on the floor after.

So the puzzle is to reason about an axis you cannot touch: which floor will be under me in three steps, where must I be standing for a lamp to light, and can I afford the glass? Every room has a par found by the game's own solver, which tries every cable the lift allows.

When the fuse box is reached with every lamp lit the museum lights up: the current runs back along the cable, lamp after lamp wakes in warm light, the fuse handle drops and the old hall glows. Twelve hand-built rooms from a short first run to a cable that has to wait for the lift, then upper wings seen from the other end and a daily room that is the same for everyone. Back, redo and hints are always there, nothing is timed, and your progress stays in this browser.

How to play

Run the cable from the generator through every lamp to the fuse box, one square at a time.
You steer east-west and north-south. The lift turns the floor at every step, so the big plan shows the floor your next step lands on.
Display cases block you, glass and creaking boards add strain, and the total must stay under the limit.
Light every lamp before the fuse box. Finish in par steps with no hint for three stars.

Controls

Tap or click a square next to the cable's end — take a step
Arrow keys, WASD, D-pad or stick — take a step; Z, U or Backspace — a step back; Y — redo
H or Hint — a hint; C or Restart — start the room again
P, Escape or Start — pause

Frequently asked questions

What is the missing axis?

The museum has three floors, the third direction of space. You steer along two axes only, east-west and north-south. The floor is turned by a clockwork lift, one position at every step you take, in a pattern each room shows. You cannot choose the floor, so you have to work out what each floor will be when the cable gets there.

Which floor does my next step land on?

The big plan always shows it. The cable stands on one floor, and the lift brings the next floor of its pattern round for the next step. The two small plans beside the big one show the floors after that, in order, so you can look ahead. A lift shaft in the notes shows the whole pattern.

How does strain work?

Every square the cable enters adds strain: 1 for a plain board, 2 for a creaking board and 3 for glass. The sum may not pass the room's limit, shown beside the lift. A step that would pass it is refused, and a step back gives the strain back.

Why can I not step on a square?

Because on the floor the lift brings round next, that square holds a display case; or the cable already passes through that square of that floor; or the step would pass the strain limit; or it is the fuse box and a lamp is still dark. The game says which.

How are stars and par worked out?

The game's own solver tries every cable the lift allows and finds the fewest steps that light every lamp and reach the fuse box within the limit: that is par. Par steps with no hint earn three stars, one more two, any room finished one. Using a hint caps a room at two stars.

Can I make it calmer or clearer?

Yes. The lift forecast and the moving gears can be turned off, the lights-on speed has three settings, and the kit's own settings cover colour-blind palettes, reduced motion, fewer flashes, large text, sound and music. Does the game save? Yes, in this browser: rooms finished, stars, and the room you were working on with its cable in place.

About Tesseract Labyrinth: The Missing Axis

How to play

Controls

Frequently asked questions

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