4×4 Overview, Reduction, and Centers

Originally called Rubik’s Revenge, the 4×4 puzzle was released in 1981. It’s a 4x4x4 version of the 3×3 Rubik’s Cube. The 4×4 consists of 56 pieces: 24 center pieces, 24 edge pieces (or wings), and 8 corner pieces. 

Unlike the 3×3, the 4×4 has no fixed centers to establish which markings belong on which sides. While solving the centers, you must place them in their correct relative locations. If you don’t know the relative locations of the markings, you’ll need to build a mental model by examining the eight corner pieces.

Obtaining a Textured 4×4

You can make one yourself using bump dots. The 4×4 puzzle has significantly smaller pieces than the 3×3, so the markings must be small enough to not interfere with turning inner layers and sides. The markings must be securely attached. Alternatively, you can create tactile markings using a 3D printer and attach them with a suitable adhesive. In either case, you’ll need 16 each of five different markings, or 80 markings total. Mark five sides and leave the sixth side unmarked.

You can also contact TextureCube to inquire about the availability of a custom textured 4×4.

The Reduction Method

There are many 4×4 solutions. The Reduction Method transforms the 4×4 puzzle into the functional equivalent of a 3×3. In this method, solve the centers first by grouping center pieces with the same marking together. Then pair edge pieces that share the same two markings. Finally, solve the puzzle as a 3×3 (resolving either or both parity cases if they arise).

Solving the Centers

Each side has a center consisting of a 2×2 grid of four pieces. When the cube is scrambled, those four pieces may be scattered around the puzzle. A good beginner step is to select one of the markings as the bottom, find the four center pieces with that marking, and group them together. It’s often easiest to create two pairs of center pieces, then move them together with a double layer turn.

In the 3×3 puzzle, centers are fixed. That’s not the case for the 4×4 puzzle. If your solved puzzle has circles opposite squares, then you must solve the circle centers on one side of the cube and the square centers on the opposite side. Otherwise, you’ll need to correct the centers before the puzzle can be solved.

Solve the bottom center first, then the top center with the opposite side markings. To solve the remaining four centers, orient the whole puzzle so that the bottom side is in your left hand and the top side in your right. The remaining four unsolved centers form a band around the cube. Solve each in sequence, again working with pairs and rotating them together with double layer turns. 

Ensure that you do not disturb a center group once it’s solved. This website doesn’t supply explicit algorithms for this. Learning to preserve centers through experimentation may be initially frustrating, but it will develop both your confidence and intuition.

Remember that each center must be solved in its position relative to other centers. If you forget the relative positions of your cube’s six markings, check the corner pieces. Each corner piece indicates the relative positions of three sides. By examining all corners, you can build a mental map of your cube’s six markings.

When you’ve solved all six centers, confirm by touch that each center consists of four matching markings, that opposite centers are correctly positioned, and that the remaining four centers are solved in their correct relative positions.