The History of Triazzle

In the late 1980's Dan Gilbert was asked to create a puzzle for the poison arrow frog exhibit at the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Inspired by existing square matching puzzles, he chose instead to use triangles and added a frame into which the pieces would nest and match. This allowed for a larger, illustrated canvass and also made the game portable. The puzzle would be illustrative and eye-catching. A cleverly deceptive formula allowed the puzzle to be nearly completed in numerous configurations but would have only one solution. The Aquarium did not publish the puzzle and it was shown to several retailers who declined. Then, in 1991 Dan met with the DaMert Company, a small toy and gift company in Hayward California. Triazzle was the type of product they were looking to add to their line. Over the next decade Triazzle sold over 5 million copies.