General Discussion » Contest: Worst Puzzle Ever
Here's my first entry:
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
(Note: It's my first time using www.mediafire.com. No registration required and files stay online indefinitely. I just went to the main page and hit upload. When we get a tanga solution to the problem, I'll resubmit.)
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 02:54 PM |
Hope2002, Hopesgrrl, Puzzleplyr9, Chewbacca (the puppy), Lucy (the puppy), and my favorite WPE (Edit: this would be a cryptopix, the picture on the site would be a link to this video) :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4uVEd1k0D0
[1] and [2] Enjoyed those immensely, but something is amiss here! Snce you have to include the (alleged) solution when you submit a puzzle to Tanga, shouldn't the same rules apply here?
I think the explanations may be even "worse" than the puzzles themselves. ;-)
LOL. I think we're gonna see a LOT of levers :) I used one.
[3] Yes, explanations! I almost feel that if I can understand it and work it out on my own, it should be disqualified :)
[2] Speaking of which: LOVE the video. Great idea, great timing, great performances (the kids were awesome!). Love the line "I think I made this puzzle." Plus a cameo from Hope's avatar!!!
If only it were a Cryptopix. Ah well... Honorable Mention, for sure.
Thoughts on "worst." (yes, the man has time on his hands tonight, what's it to ya?)
Was pondering the Big Picture while making two separate entries tonight. I was going though Google images, looking for specific stuff, and I found a PERFECT picture for what I wanted to do...
... and then I though, "Hmm.. is this picture too good? What is 'worst' anyway?"
I mean, wouldn't the worst puzzle ever have awful pictures? I don't mean blurry or impossible to understand - though, arguably, that's certainly valid, too - but pictures that don't quite seem "fair"? Like a picture of a kid holding a balloon at a circus - with no pointy arrow - to mean "balloon." Does that go too far? Is there a too far?
You could certainly deconstruct all the way out to the abstract edge and have, say, a picture of a fire hydrant, an apple, and Tom Hanks... and claim that the answer "This is the worst puzzle ever" couldn't be more appropriate. It wouldn't get my vote, but not because it's an invalid approach. That joke just wouldn't land for me.
But... the Photoshopping itself intrigues me. Am I trying to make the BEST version of my TERRIBLE idea, or should the layout also be bad? There's definitely some wiggle room here, I can sense it.
And, I gotta tell ya, that, more than anything, is why I'm having a lot of fun with this. I'm actually amusing myself on the META level. One of my puzzles, I think, has a neat idea (that makes it terrible), but I'm trying to find this other idea: the average puzzle with really bad image choices. Not sure I'll find it, but the looking has been swell.
[1] Hey, I'm responding to myself! This time I'm including an explanation.
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
(This cyst) + (the war) + (STP) + (Zuul) + (lever)
This is the worst puzzle ever!
Personally, I love the STP being both tail/head of successive clues.
Googling cysts is an exercise from which I will not soon recover! Do you have any idea how bad they can get or in which sensitive locations they can appear?
[6] Dang, df, that's pretty bad. And I mean that in the good way :)
Okay, here's one of mine. I'm just tickled by this idea.
Oh, and it needs no explanation.
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
-Dave
Beat this one!
This is incredibly fun, here's my contribution:
And since we are including explanations now:
Pictures of pasta dishes, a map of Europe with an arrow pointing to Germany (DE), a plate with a bratWURST on it and a confused cow.
(dishes) + (DE) + (wurst) + (puzzled heifer)
After I finished, I thought I should have a -D after the puzzled heifer, but then I remembered we're going for "worst". :)
[9] Even knowing the answer, that one is awful!! Good job!
To explain the above in [9]
The first picture is a sketch of the city of Dis by Botticelli
The second is Clinton and the word definition in reference to the statement he made in that video, "It depends on what your definition of is is."
Third is Dubya-the you or "ya"
Fourth is highlighting the county of Worcestershire - (stir + shire - from the Hobbit of course) leaving worce.
Fifth is an obscure puzzle I found.
Sixth is an actress I found on IMdB that no one could find just by searching for her picture--Ita Ever.
So
Dis is dub worce puzzle Ever!
Note to self: Stop groaning out loud over these, or someone at work will hear you and ask what you're doing!
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 06:51 AM |
[4] It is a cryptopix!! The original graphic would be a post to the video. It's been done before on the OWW and the Hyper. Thought it would work here too!
I just didn't do the graphic for it because: a) there wasn't a place to post the graphic when I first posted the link and b) I didn't want to make people have to reenter the link when they just could have clicked on the link.
[2] I'm going to have to wait till I get home to view your vid since youtube is blocked at work for some unknown reason...thank goodness they haven't found Tanga yet!
[6] Yuck!
[8] Awful in a completely different way. Love how you can see the words through the blur!
[10] Trying to pull yours up and having trouble. Is that your evil plan?
Posted on Tue Feb 12, 2008 02:59 PM |
I was going for "This is the worst tanga puzzle ever"
T HIS Clinton's "is" speach THE WURST a Tanga Puzzle, EVERest -est.
Do I really need to post the solution? I guess the winner will likely be the one you can't get, even knowing the answer.
All the entries are fantastic so far. And mediafire is great!
[18] No, not part of the plan, but I notice everyone else's link looks different than mine? I just used the link that was there, even clicked on "copy link":
[19] Great! Putting in an actually puzzle for the word 'puzzle' stopped me in my tracks and made me try and solve it to come up with another word.
[22] No, that was brilliant! Brilliant in a "WTH was that all about" kind of way!
Here's another one.
Explanation:
Dictionary definition of Thesis, Dewar's Scotch mirror, Mr. Clean with an arrow pointing to his Tee shirt, Puss moth, Russ Sewell (A Knight's Tale), Everett Dirksen, Mr. Clean with an arrow pointing to his Tee shirt
Thesis, Dewars + T, Puss + Sewell, Everett - T
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 02:49 PM |
My little tribute to Monocle:
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
Salt:
The folders are opened and closed...just like binary. Hmmm...
[25] LOL LOL. I'll have to respond later when I'm not late for work. but.... LOL.
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 08:11 AM |
I think as a birthday present to me, you should just give me the award now.
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
THI = Ven Diagram of alan THICK and wheat THINS. Overlap = "THI"
SIS = Sicily - muhammad ALI -> "SIS"
THAW = A snowman melting -> "THAW"
WERE = A pirate says "Arrr!". 2 minutes later, we'd be in past tense, thus "are" becomes "WERE"
STEP = An exaggerated STEP
UZZ = A Bee says "BUZZ". Subtracting "bee" from "BUZZ" leaves "UZZ"
ELE = "Elevator" minus "Vader" = "ELE"
VER = Ernest P Worrell's catch phrase is "Hey, Vern!" Subtracting the N from the missing part leaves "VER"
THI + SIS + THAW + WERE + STEP + UZZ + ELE + VER
I'm afraid my feeble effort can't hold a candle to any of yours, but FWIW:
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
It's a bit lke Arnott's in that it's based on missing words, but I didn't go the extra mile of barely blurring them.
THIS IS (spinal tap)
THE WORST (witch)
PUZZLE (jigsaw)
EVER (after)
Yours are all so good, er, bad, perhaps we should have subcategories of "worstness": Most Obvious, Most Disgusting, Most Obscure Solution, etc.
Ack, it buuuuurns! These are all so delightfully terrible. [5] Arnott, I too have been pondering "worstness." Maybe we can treat it like "obscenity" and just say we'll know it when we see it.
[30] I like the idea of subcategories, but we still need a grand prize winner, one that manages to blend multiple types of terrible into it.
So, I guess I'm judging, but does anyone else want to help me pick a winner? I fear that I might overdose on awful if I'm forced to do this on my own. I would ask renfurdson, but I don't know if he'll have the time to follow this thread with all his other duties.
OK, this one isn't eligible to win, but I have to join in the fun.
Man, mediafire doesn't work at work...this sucks.
[33] Fortunately, that's one of the few things that DOES work in my district!
[33] Bummer. Aaron was going to start a thread for me that allowed image uploading, but by the time I read his email response, this thread had already been started. Apparently you have to enable image uploading upon creation of the thread.
UPDATE: Aaron has come through for us! Uploading now works.
Anything that contains/allows videos is blocked here at work. Mediafire is okay for now, which is excellent. I went home at lunch to see Blue Devil Ducky's video (which I LOVE by the way!)
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:00 PM |
Ack! I am missing out on all this fun since I am at work. I won't be able to post mine until I get home! :(
I don't know if anyone else will be able to see this... but here was the one I actually submitted last night... before I knew we were not actually submitting them.
http://www.tanga.com/uploaded_files/0013/8838/f...
DISHES = this is
a can of DUH = the
a WURST = worst
PUS + ELLE (mcpherson) = puzzle
EVE (singer) + r = ever
I have plans for a much bet... uh worse one but it will need to wait until I get home.
[25] I broke out into spontaneous laughter several time on my way to work this morning because of that... once on the train. Fortunately... stuff like that goes unnoticed around here. I'm not sure if you were saying that my puzzle was a worst puzzle ever... or you just wanted to pay homage to it. Either way, I am honored to have a tribute puzzle made for me... even if it is for a "worst puzzle ever" contest. LOL! For what it is worth, my puzzle you "reference" may be the first puzzle where the answer is also (meant to be) a red herring.
[38] Your pus picture made me gag. You've trumped dfmurphy's cyst. *Awfully* well done.
[39] I guess I should be happy that the image came up broken in my browser. :)
It would be interesting to pick the biggest groaners out of a few puzzles to make a "meta-worst" entry...
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 12:58 PM |
hey everyone
I just made it so you can post images on this thread.
aw
I know this one isn't a winner, but hey ... this kind of stuff makes me want to wretch.
I like BlueDevilDucky's tribute to Monocle.
I don't want to win this title, but I want to submit a puzzle.
Solution:
Not friendly to color-blind solvers.
If you can distinguish the colors, you have to figure out that there are too many red squares. Then ignore the letters in the red squares.
The other letters are crossword intersections. Group those letters by color. You might have to look at the screen from a certain angle to tell the difference between green and light blue.
Anagram the groups of letters to get "reasonable" words. You get yellow=THE, dark blue=PUZZLE, pink=THIS, orange=IS, green=EVER, light blue=WORST. Be careful with how you arrange the letters in the pink squares.
There are many permutations of the 6 words. You'll have to keep trying different ones till you get the right one! :)
Once again, not eligible.
Solution:
discus = huge stretch
Dao = impossible to research
hearse + T = lame
pez = another stretch
lever = terrible picture
[44] Huh...no, wait....ummmmm.....Nope, still don't get it! :-)
ok... decided to crank out my second idea during lunch.
solution:
[think tank book] - [ink tank] + [isis] = this is
[therapy book] - [rap picture] - "[why book]" = the
[bad pus.. worse pus] = worst puzz
[elevator] - 8 = le ever
I thought I would add to the worseness by making some ridiculous -/+ steps
[32] I was going to do that, been at work all day though.
[24]scoutmom, I like the use of "Mr Clean with an arrow pointing to his Tee shirt". You even used him twice, like it's really very important! :)
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 03:37 PM |
My traditional puzzle:
http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey...
edit: BTW, mediafire is pretty easy to use. Great temporary solution. Thanks dfmurphy
the explanation
dis + (isthmus - imus) sth + wor + st. david - david + puzo + lever
[13] Haha. Ita Ever, "Estonian actress, mother of Roman Baskin". Couldn't get more obscure than that. You get 5 stars in difficulty.
[48] I don't think I'm going to click on that thumbnail.
[56] ahhh... what's a little pus among friends? LOL
[all] they have all been good so far.
[28] Oh, I thought it was a "big bee" minus a "sweating baby bee". :)
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 05:51 PM |
Okee dokee - here's my first one.
Okay, Mr. T would translate to the letter T plus "his" from the next picutre (the other word is crossed out)
Plus eye = "I" and some goofy alien thing with an "S" on it (put upside down for no aparent reason) = "IS"
Then the dictionary definition of "the" = "THE"
Then a person with knockwurst sausage wrapped around his neck like a creepy scarf - "wurst" = "WORST"
Then the dictionary definition of "Puzzle" = "PUZZLE"
Plus a math term of e - e=2.71828183 = "E" plus "VAH!" = "EVER!"
Easily translated to "This is the worst puzzle ever!"
Right?
Posted on Mon Feb 11, 2008 06:37 PM |
Here's the other one I made last night
Thesis: = "THIS IS"
The word "twenty" #20 which equals "T", an 8 which equals "H" and a five dollar bill #5 which equals "E" = all together is "THE"
The solver should , of course, notice that those are little pictures are a knockwurst cartoon guy which translates to "wurst" = worst
The Wurst guy spells out EVER
and the background is puzzle pieces
All of which would automaticaly lead the solver to see that the answer is The Worst Puzzle Ever?!
[59] three... too big. It bleeds over into the side Tanga ad banner.
500 x 500
[10] ding ding ding! I'm not sure anyone's gonna beat "puzzled heifer" for me. It's almost too clever... but at the same time totally ridculous... without being completley ungettable. LOVE it.
[18] Thanks. I was specifically trying to blur each word juuuust enough so that you could still read them, but have them still blurry enough for the "puzzlemaker" to feel satisfied that he "removed" them and made it hard.
[24] et al... interesting. Do you all *not* start with a 500 x 500 square? For me, it's the easiest way to see how much room I have to design.
[28] OMG! Spam, you get a special prize from me - LOVE it! Alas, it's way too clever to be bad. Just the fact that you used both a Ven Diagram *and* THICK and THIN opposites in it shows way too high a level of wordplay, thought, and intelligence (though, for the record, it's Alan Thicke, with an "e" on the end... a mistake that almost gets you back in the running :)) Great stuff, though.
[32] Robizmyboy! You *KNOW* I adore this one. Exactly the sort of elegant alternative that's never gonna win. In other words, something I might do :)
[44] Oh, the pure genius of this. Totally unsolvable. Like ducky's, kind of not a Cryptopix, but still... so good... partly because it's true: I could so see someone making and submitting this puzzle :)
(side note to ducky: and I quote... "Cryptopix puzzles are solved by putting the pictures together to form a word or phrase!" Yours is clearly a OWW)
[45] Wonderfully clunky.
[57] Agreed! We're all winners!
Man, my other one seems so pedestrian now :)
TH
ISIS ... obscure but gettable)
THROWER ... okay, I love that in addition to this being a lame representation of someone being a "thrower" - as if there could be a good way to do that - this guy's name is actually Willie Thrower, the first black QB in the NFL! Without that, I think I would have tried to find a "better" picture
STEP
PEZ
AL
LEVER ... you have no idea how many times I went back and forth on whether to have that yellow arrow. I really like the idea of having a picture be vague in what it's represents, but I felt, after using both Isis and Thrower, that to not have the arrow here would be gilding the lily
TH + ISIS + THROWER + STEP + PEZ + AL + LEVER
I also enjoy - just like df's entry at [6] - how there's no symmetry of solving style: some you need to sound out, and some you need to *not* sound out and spell out, instead.
The idea for this contest was inspired by this thread: http://tanga.com/forum/blogs/1406-Top_Ten_Complainers
The unofficial “Worst Puzzle Ever” competition is open to everyone and will be judged by robrizob. Entry deadline is Wednesday, Feb 13, 2008.
Each person can submit up to three Cryptopix rebus-style puzzles where the answer is “this is the worst puzzle ever.” In accordance with the theme, the more obscure the images/solve methods used, the better. There will be winners declared in several categories.
Note: This message was been updated on Feb 14, 2008 to reflect the final results, which can be found at http://www.tanga.com/forum/blogs/1408-Contest_Worst_Puzzle_Ever?comments_page=1#comment_143343 (comment 283).