Room Escape Artist

REA Contributor Matthew Stein will be giving a talk about Japanese puzzle culture at this year’s ThinkyCon (October 26-28, 2026). It’s an online conference hosted by Thinky Games, and it’s free to attend!

If you enjoyed Matthew’s article The Brilliance of Japanese Puzzle Culture or our recent REPOD episode with Japanese puzzle designer Tokohal and want to learn more, this talk is for you.

Talk Details

The Brilliance of Japanese Puzzle Culture: Multisolvability, Metapuzzles, and Meaningful Failure

In Japan, nazotoki (puzzle-solving) culture is everywhere, from trains to stadiums to theme parks to escape rooms and escape cafes. This talk will discuss the core tenets of the Japanese puzzle style, including the design pattern of re-solving puzzles to new answers, ō-nazo (structural metapuzzles), and how the potential for fair failure can yield more satisfying successes. Drawing on a three-month research trip to Tokyo and Osaka, including 100+ puzzle experiences, multiple game festivals, and interviews with puzzle designers, this talk explores what has allowed Japanese puzzling to become so pervasive — and what other designers can learn from it.

The talk is at 1:30 PM (Eastern) on October 27, 2026.

About ThinkyCon

• October 26-28, 2026
• Online
• Free!