in the solved condition. In the unsolved condition, colours are distributed amongst the pieces of the cube. Puzzles like the Rubik's Cube which are manipulated by rotating a section of pieces are popularly called twisty puzzles. They are often face-turning, but commonly exist in corner-turning and edge-turning varieties.

The mechanical construction of the puzzle will usually define the rules by which the combination of pieces can be altered. This leads to some limitations on what combinations are possible. For instance, in the