QiYi Clover Plus Cube

QiYi Clover Plus Cube

From the outside, you see a cube with a four-leaf clover on every face. Inside, however, two different turning systems are at work. The QiYi Clover Plus Cube turns around its edges, just like the classic Clover Cube, a variant of the Curvy Copter designed by Yukang Wu. On top of that, it also allows regular face turns, like those on a 2x2 cube. After just a few moves, the puzzle no longer looks like a cube, which is why it belongs to the shape-shifting puzzles category (shape mods).

How the Clover Plus works

The basic move is a 180° turn around an axis that passes through an edge. In some positions, you can also turn a piece by a smaller angle. This is called jumbling: pieces move to different positions and the shape of the puzzle changes noticeably. Jumbling is exactly what makes solving much harder than on regular cubes.

The 2x2-style face turns give you more options. According to users, they help you resolve parity faster, which can be tricky on a regular Clover Cube. If you scramble the cube with edge turns only, you can solve it just like a regular Clover Cube. With so many turning axes, you sometimes need to align the pieces more precisely before the next move.

Inside, there are coloured pieces that stay hidden as long as the puzzle is in its cube shape. You can ignore them or treat them as an extra challenge and solve them along with the rest.

Who is it for?

For anyone who can already solve the 3x3 and 2x2 and wants to try a puzzle outside the WCA events. Knowing the Curvy Copter or the regular Clover Cube helps a lot. This is not a puzzle for speedsolving. Here, understanding the moves matters more than TPS. For a child's first cube, it's better to choose something simpler. For an older child who solves classic cubes with ease, the Clover Plus can be an interesting challenge. The colourful stickerless version also looks great on a collection shelf.

Specifications

• Type: shape-shifting puzzle, edge turns (Clover Cube) and 2x2-style face turns
• Manufacturer: QiYi
• Size: 68 mm
• Weight: approx. 194 g
• Colour scheme: stickerless bright