Seasonal Clues in Sprues

Earlier this year, 'Clues in Sprues' became a bonefide breakout hit online, generating hundreds of thousands of views on Instagram, with hundreds of players clamouring (okay, patiently ordering) their own set of Sprues -  plastic frames, with built-in puzzles.

Mindful of their popularity, we went back to the roots of the project - it was conceived to be a little advent challenge - snip-and-solve a puzzle a day, each revealing a Christmas word, and have only gone and built this!

Following the success of the original Clues in Sprues, we have returned with a festive collection of puzzles hidden inside unreasonably garish plastic. 

Designed with 24 stages, these are perfect as an advent countdown, a Christmas Day distraction, or that strange period between Christmas and New Year when nobody knows what day it is or if they need to put the bins out. Either way, they make excellent decorations for the tree.

Sprues are the frames used to hold plastic components during manufacturing. Normally, they are discarded. We felt this was a missed opportunity. 

Hidden within these sprues are 24 seasonal words. To find them, you'll need to solve a collection of puzzles involving folding, manipulating, ordering, aligning, pressing, examining, and occasionally staring at a piece of plastic while convinced the answer is about to reveal itself. 

Some puzzles may take seconds. Others may take considerably longer. The person next to you will almost certainly solve at least one instantly. This is unfortunate, but statistically inevitable. 

Feedback from our original backers was that they loved the puzzles, but were sad the sprues themselves didn’t play a larger role, so we went back to the drawing board. 

After much redesigning, rearranging, and muttering, we have increased the amount of plastic actively involved in the game to 85%. That means less waste, more puzzling, and significantly fewer bits whose sole purpose is existing. 

The sprues are printed using plant-based PLA and can be recycled once you've finished with them, although we suspect many people will keep them around to confuse visitors. 

We offer two formats of Seasonal Sprues: physical - sent through the post, and digital - sent through the air (for the 3D printers among you). 

We've also added a good range of add-ons to this campaign, including the original game itself. If you want to buy an additional sprue, simply increase your pledge by the same amount.

Four festive sprues 

• A Christmas tree, stocking, star, and candy cane. They function equally well as decorations, conversation pieces, and repositories of hidden puzzle nonsense. 

A solving booklet 

• Featuring every puzzle laid out and labelled, alongside a suggested solving order. You are welcome to ignore this entirely. Many did, at their peril.

A storage pouch 

• A sealable pouch to keep your sprues safe between bouts of seasonal brilliance and confusion. 

What you'll need 

• A pair of snips and perhaps a little sandpaper for tidying the occasional sprute nubbin. No specialist knowledge required. 

July – Campaign ends. Playtesting concludes. 

August – Printing begins.

October – Pledge manager launches. Shipping commences.*

November – Sprues arrive at your home. 

December – Madness ensues. Delirium. The dreaded “Puzzle Sweats.” 

We deliver to the UK (around £5), and overseas (typically around £10). Our pledge manager supplies shipping but does not include any current tariffs or import duties - sorry, these are outside of our control as a small independent business! 

We have changed to stronger, hardier packaging which will nestle your Sprues tightly for transport, and are putting them in a sealed protective bag too where possible.

*In the event we reach the physical Boos In Sprues goal, we will ship those who have ordered this bonus first.

£2,500 – Obfuscated Hints Booklet - TARGET MET

Hints. But significantly less helpful.We'll take our normal hints and hide them behind layers of additional puzzles, complexity, and poor decision-making as bonus content to induce panic/rage. 

£5,000 – Physical and digital release of Boos in Sprues 

A Halloween collection of spooky puzzles. Entirely harmless. Probably. 

£10,000 – The List (Bonus Puzzle)

Well, are you Naughty or Nice? This mini puzzle features both words - so whichever you find first probably fits best. 

Throughout the campaign we'll release three miniature festive sprues, we are calling MiniSprigs. Each contains a puzzle. Each can be solved. In theory. Will you crack all three?

Minisprig One

This has been volved by backer Rebecca. See if you can solve it - message in with your answers via Kickstarter.

Clue: The circular pieces come out, and need rotating and moving.

Minisprig Two

This has been volved by backer Vivien. Can you solve it too?

You can download this model via enigmailed.com/products/minisprigs and either print it, or explore it online. 

No 3D printer? No problem! Head to 3dviewer.net, add the downloadable  model, and explore it to your heart's content.