Customer Reviews: Read 17 more reviews...
 A great challenge! October 28, 2007
K. Andrews
35 out of 37 found this review helpful
My 13 year old can solve the 3x3 cube in under a minute consistently, and was looking for a new challenge. I was happy to see this was only a few dollars more, and even happier it was made by Milton Bradley. It's been 4 days now and he cannot solve the 4x4 yet! It appears to be well made, and glide easily around the pivot. The price here on Amazon cannot be beat!
The best 4x4 ever made November 1, 2007
Jeremy
26 out of 28 found this review helpful
Finally a Rubik's brand 4x4 that doesn't pop or lock. If your a fan of the Eastsheen 4x4 clone, you'll find this cube just as smooth, but with the solid feel of the 4x4 product distributed by Winning Moves.
And, no, I haven't seen "Pursuit of Happiness" yet, but I'll keep my eyes peeled. April 24, 2008
My Uncle Stu (Boston)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
Of course you should follow your own interests and do what you enjoy, but there's also something to be said for having a few skills that seem more impressive than they are.
It's not that doing the Rubik's cube is easy, but it isn't as mysterious as it seems at first. It actually doesn't take a genius. There is a method for solving it, and it is learnable. It requires no more effort than solving one of those video games that you sit in your basement and play for hours with your buddies. A handful of your aimless buddies might be impressed when you beat a video game, but I promise it doesn't travel any further than that. Video games link a little bit more directly to your brain's reward system, with their immediate bonuses for good play and game-over consequences for mistakes. The cube might take a little bit more discipline to stick with, but it certainly won't take up any more time.
Being a bigger cube, with more moving parts- just 56 though, since the center is a sphere- Rubik's Revenge is easier to break. It's not conducive to trying to beat your previous time. You have to make sure all the planes are lined up before giving it a turn. The 4X4X4 seems like it would be much more complicated than the 3X3X3, what with 10 to the 45th possible permutations, versus just 10 to the 19th for the smaller version. But, in fact, it isn't much harder. Here's the trick, and stop reading if you want to figure it out on your own: any N cubed puzzle can be solved by simplifying it to the (N-1) cubed puzzle, and then just solving it from there. (I'm not pretending I figured this out on my own. There are countless blogs and videos devoted to this stuff. Getting help does not devalue the accomplishment. As I keep trying to say, even with the formulas, you still need to struggle and practice in order to really internalize how and why they work.) With the 4 across version, you solve the centers and pair up the edge pieces, then you never have to turn any sections down the midline plane, and the cube converts to a 3X3X3. It turns out any N cubed puzzle can be solved by reducing it to the N-1 cubed version. It's still a different skill and you have to play around with it to get the hang of it, but it's not like a black belt trying to move up a degree. It only took me a couple of weeks, although that did include an airport day. And, it isn't quite as simple as that sounds. There are a few distinctions that require different tricks. Since the 4X4X4 lacks fixed centers, there are a few possible novel situations that can come up called `parity errors.' It looks sort of like when someone takes apart the regular cube but puts the pieces back in wrong and it can't be solved. But the 4 cubed parity errors are solvable although they require some extra fancy little algorithms to memorize. People grumble about these algorithms on some of the web sites, but I actually find them very elegant, in their near-symmetry, with repetitive doings and undoings and minor little twists and turns putting things into place. I could sit and turn that into a metaphor for things in life but right now that feels like a boring idea. Springtime in New England.
I feel like I didn't really get the 3 block cube until I mastered the 4 block. The Rubik's 4X4X4 is fantastic. You will feel grandiose when you solve it, and most people will be impressed. Some percentage of people won't give you the satisfaction of being impressed, but it's still a positive accomplishment since it is always important exactly who those people are. Still, I continue to have trouble knowing what to say when people asked me how I learned it. I used to tell the truth but that leaves people disappointed, like finding out how a magic trick is done. So I've experimenting with various more mystical answers. I'll let you know if I settle on one.
4 X 4 Rubik's Cube is bigger and better than the original! December 18, 2007
N. Creamy (Rancho Cordova, CA)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
After having finally conquered the brain-twisting original 3 X 3 cube, I was eager to try the next level. I wasn't disappointed. While many of the techniques for solving the 3 X 3 cube are transferable to the 4 x 4, the 4 X 4 cube also presents several new and interesting twists, no pun intended, that make for a much more challenging puzzle. After a few minutes at it, you'll understand why it's called the "Revenge". Solving the puzzle for the first time is a feat sure to fill you with lasting smugness. But soon you're at it again, endeavoring to master the solving techniques and best your previous time. Though slightly larger than the 3 X 3 version, the Rubik's Revenge is still quite comfortable to grip and easy to manipulate. However, my hands are on the larger side, so people with small hands may find the cube a bit difficult to handle. As far as durability goes, if this cube can withstand the hours of merciless twisting punishment of my brutish man hands, you can bet the average person will get some great mileage out of it. A fun and challenging puzzle for problem solvers of all ages!
 Great for those who like to solve problem January 24, 2008
Ed (LA USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If someone you know had solve the 3X3 so easy and consider that was never any challenge anymore. This would be a very good present for them.
When they solve this one, you could carry on with 5X5 and 6x6.
It would be very amusing to see their expression when they open the box.
Ha haaaa
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