Cards Against Humanity Founders Launch New ‘Magic’ Jigsaw Puzzles

by Ellen Glover
June 1, 2020
Cards Against Humanity creators have developed new "magic" 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzles
Photo: Magic Puzzle Company / Kickstarter

Cards Against Humanity co-founders Max Temkin and Ben Hantoot just launched the Magic Puzzle Company, a push to develop a new line of jigsaw puzzles, and it’s already been a hit. On Monday, the company exceeded $3 million in contributions on the Kickstarter page where the puzzles are sold, far exceeding the original $44,000 goal.

The Magic Puzzle Company teamed up with magicians Jordan Gold and Simon Coronel and called on a group of independent artists to create a new kind of jigsaw puzzle. All three 1,000-piece puzzles feature intricate, detailed art and narrative “easter eggs” throughout. Plus, using principles from mathematics, magic and illusion, the group has designed each puzzle to have a “magic” ending that is triggered when the final piece is put into place.

The idea is to keep people engaged and entertained throughout the puzzling process and enter into a kind of “flow” state that lasts from beginning to end, according to Gold.

“We felt we could enhance that feeling for people with the right art details to make the puzzle stimulating to solve,” Gold told The Verge. “[T]he art is super important, but very few people are doing new things with puzzle art.”

This launch comes at a time when puzzling is experiencing somewhat of a heyday. Jigsaw puzzle sales have soared amid the COVID-19 pandemic, creating even more interest in the Magic Puzzle Company’s new game.

“It’s absolutely crushing what we expected. We had no idea it was going to grow this much,” Hantoot told Chicago Inno. “We went into this project with the goal of trying to make every moment of your experience with this puzzle just a little more engaging than what you’re used to with a jigsaw puzzle.”

Buyers can either purchase one puzzle for $20 or all three puzzles for $50 and will receive their order in October. For now, the puzzles are only available for purchase on Kickstarter, but the Magic Puzzle Company says it hopes to eventually get its puzzles into local game and book stores.

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