Codebox maze generator review

Today we have a new maze generator to review. I think you are going to like this one because it has so much more functionality than most I have seen online.

I will be using the same format I have used for my review of the top maze generators and am adding this review to the main blog post. If you are not familiar with that post I will look at what shapes of maze are available, the cell types, size, choices to start and end the maze, is the solution given and can you download it. Let’s get to the site review.

CODEBOX

Shapes: 4+ : Square, Circle, Triangular Grid, Hexagonal Grid. While there are 4 main types you can also create an infinite number of shapes using the mask feature !!

Cell types: 3: Square, Hexagons, Triangles

Width and Height: 2 - 50 for squares and hexagons, Triangles from 4-85 width to 2-50 height, and circles can have 30 layers

Start/end: 4 choices: None, Top to Bottom, Left to Right, Hardest entrance/exit

Solution generated: Yes

Downloads available: Yes, as an SVG file.

What this site does best: Of all the sites I reviewed this is one of only 2 sites with Circular maze generation. It is also the site with the most flexibility in creating shapes. You can create a distance map that shows how far the point is from the entrance. The generator offers a choice of 10 different algorithms to generate the maze. You can also solve these mazes on screen using your mouse and keyboard. You can also choose to watch the maze generate !

Examples: Starting in the top left corner a simple 20x20 maze, a hexagonal grid maze, a circular maze, and a shape I made myself using the mask feature. I also suggest you check out the examples given on the site.

Finally here is a look at an example of a distance map. From the bottom entrance in green to the top exit in red (generally).

I couldn’t resist making a “do you” maze using the mask feature.

This is an excellent website for generating mazes. I recommend it.

Maze of the Week #2 - Monument Valley Maze

This week I am featuring the famous Monument Valley landscape for a maze. You’ve seen it Western movies and tv shows for decades. Today I will also share 3 different versions of the maze (like comic book alternative covers). We have a black and white version, a color version, and a color version with clouds. All are the same maze, made with a free drawn construction. Which do you prefer ?

Some information about Monument Valley

The large sandstone buttes are near the Utah Arizona border on the Navajo Nation Reservation and is part of the Colorado plateau. Wikipedia is my go-to for information. If you want to visit, the admission is very inexpensive as is the nearby campsite and you can even book a tour with a Navajo Guide ! It can best be described as majestic.

You can find many videos about Monument Valley online but this short one from National Geographic is my favorite. The soil color is so vibrant and changes with the movement of the sun during the day.

And before we get to the mazes let’s take a look at what the subject matter looks like with a photo courtesy of Pixabay and pexels.com. This photo shows a larger landscape than what I focused on which is the butte on the left.

Let’s look at the 3 maze options:

My first version of the maze is a simple black white version.

While in this version #2 I add in the vibrant color the region is known for, while adding the landscape to the butte. I was also able to add some darker colors for the places in the shadows. I opted against adding contours to the landscape.

And in our final version we get a more defined sky that includes some clouds. For me, this is the preferred version.

Monument Valley Maze

I hope you enjoy the mazes.

You can find downloads of the maze on the homepage.

Coming next week:

Stop back on January 17th for our first building maze of the year. A maze of a museum.

Maze of the Week #1 - Horseshoe Bend Maze, Arizona

Welcome to our first maze of the year ! We start off with a landscape maze featuring Horseshoe Bend near Page, Arizona. This is a full color maze (using only 6 colors) and uses a draw and cut maze construction. It is not a typical maze to solve because of the use of the natural shape of the stones which create the walls, but I think you will enjoy it.

Some information about Horseshoe Bend

Horseshoe Bend is a large bend in the Colorado River a few miles from the town of Page, Arizona. From a geological standpoint it is an entrenched meander. If you want to learn more about the bend I suggest you check out the Wikipedia page. If you are more interested in visiting the bend, you have options to fly it, hike it and raft it. You also have the opportunity to visit Antelope Canyon which is just 7 miles away ! Seems like a nice vacation.

If you like videos here is one with some great travel information about Horseshoe Bend that I recommend,

Let’s take a look at what exactly I am mazing with an amazing photo of the subject courtesy of Francesco Ungaro, who you can follow on Instagram @ _francesco_ungaro_. And now we can confirm that the bend does indeed look like a horseshoe !

Photo by Francesco Ungaro from Pexels

The Maze:

This maze only comes in one format (I tried to make a black and white version but the bend gets lost). Good Luck trying to solve the maze !

Permanent home of the maze is located here.

Coming next week hint:

Another landscape maze from a nearby place….so if you enjoy this maze come back on Monday January 10th for a similar maze !

My 2022 Website Outlook - Less mazes, higher quality

For the past 3+ years I have been posting daily mazes on this website. In 2018 and 2019 the theme was based on weird holidays. In 2020 and 2021 I featured a different type of maze each month and concluded most months with a free downloadable book. This gave me a guideline to design each daily maze and focus my work. In April of 2021 I started the Laberinto portion of the site for Spanish speakers.

For a typical 30 day month I need to do the following: 1 - Create a maze. 2 - Format and save the maze for display on the website. 3 - Create a downloadable file for the site. 4,5,6 - repeat steps 1,2, and 3 in Spanish by translating and updating each file. So each month I make 180 different files in order to populate the site. It takes a lot of time. Even for simple mazes. I work on other, more complicated mazes than the ones that I post daily. Those are the mazes I like making the most. The daily mazes are taking up a lot of time…but they do not produce a lot of enjoyment for me (typically). So they are stopping in 2022.

So what is going to happen in 2022 ? A weekly maze. 52 mazes for the year. Each maze will be more intricate. Each maze will be closer to what I call maze art. Each individual maze will have it’s own linkable section of the website for after the week is over. Each weekly maze will have a blog post telling you about the maze, possibly about how or why it was made and give more background. I also might include some additional coloring options for each maze. I like to think of it like a comic book, where each maze has an alternative cover !

I think you will see better mazes that are more shareable and more likely to be printed out and solved. Now, I will spend the same amount of time making mazes, but instead of producing 180 files for 30 days, I will make 12 files of 4 mazes for 28 days. And I will like a final product that has much higher quality (and I hope you will to!)

What type of mazes will I see on the site ?

• Sign Mazes - for some reason I like making this type of maze

• Building Mazes - a nice subject to create a maze with

• Landscape Mazes - I have not perfected these yet, but with some practice I think these could become interesting

• Landmark/Statue Mazes

When will mazes be posted ?

• Every Monday except for the first maze which will post on January 1.

• Each maze will also include a blog post to accompany it.

• Many mazes will be posted during specific weeks to honor a specific holiday / anniversary, etc. Some of my favorite mazes are already slated for September/October !!!

What makes a good subject for a maze ?

• Buildings are normally very good

• Anything that has a block like shape.

• Items that have a lot of “open” space that can hold a maze within them

  • i.e. skinny items can be difficult since they have difficulty containing a maze

And a poor subject ?

• Besides the skinny items, I have a lot of trouble with faces.

• Similar to faces, any picture/item that relies on shadows. There is a way to make these (varying the thickness and spacing of lines) but I have not yet mastered it.

How can I suggest a maze subject ?

• Maze suggestions. Please do !! I love when I get suggestions.

Now would be a good time to give you an example. Let’s start with a maze I have featured before as an example of ‘maze art’. The Playhouse Square Sign in Cleveland Ohio. Obviously, the example is smaller than when it prints on regular size paper and is solvable (and easier to see the maze!).

Playhouse Square Sign Maze

Cleveland, Ohio

From across the room this looks like a picture and not a maze (hopefully). Only when you get up close do you realize that what you are looking at is actually a maze. That is my goal.

I hope you enjoy the new format ! Let’s have a great 2022 !