Puzzle 087 is Merry-Go-Tiles, a 45-picarat Arrange puzzle at the Carousel in Pumpkin Park, Monte d'Or, in Chapter 5. You start it by tapping the carousel during the night visit to the park. Nine square tiles sit in a three-by-three frame, and each tile shows the front or back halves of horses in four colors. You can turn the tiles but not move them. Your job is to turn them so that the halves meet up into 12 complete horses, each one a single color. It's one of the four park puzzles the story needs before it moves on.
This page covers story Puzzle 087 in Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask, the 3DS game (US and UK English). The tiles and the answer are the same in the US and UK English versions; quotes use the North American text. If you're after Daily Puzzle 087, the other carousel puzzle, or Puzzle 87 from another Layton game, see Wrong Puzzle 087? below.
What Puzzle 087 is
| Name | Merry-Go-Tiles (US and UK) |
|---|---|
| Type | Arrange |
| Picarats | 45 |
| Location | Carousel, Pumpkin Park, Monte d'Or |
| Chapter | Chapter 5 |
| When | The night visit to Pumpkin Park |
| How you start it | Tap the carousel while your objective is "Investigate the Attractions!" |
| Needed for the story | Yes, along with Puzzles 088, 089 and 090 |
| Previous puzzle number | Puzzle 086, Even Deal (Casino) |
| Next puzzle number | Puzzle 088, Glass Arrows (Carousel) |
The puzzle reads: "These cheerful tiles can be put together so they form horse shapes of four different colors. With these nine tiles, you can make a total of 12 complete, uniformly colored horses within the frame, but at the moment the colors are all mixed up!" It then asks, "Can you rotate the nine tiles to match up all the colors and make 12 horses?" The objective bar says "Match up the horses!"
Every tile has four half-horses, one on each side, in cream, blue, dark brown or orange. A complete horse forms where two tiles meet and the front half on one tile and the back half on the other are the same color. The board has exactly 12 places where two tiles meet, so each of them has to hold one complete horse. The half-horses on the outside of the board, against the frame, don't count.
To turn a tile, touch it and slide the stylus around it. It turns a quarter turn at a time and stays in its place in the frame. When every tile faces the way you want, submit the board.
Puzzle names
| Version | Puzzle name |
|---|---|
| North America | Merry-Go-Tiles |
| UK | Merry-Go-Tiles |
| Japanese | 木馬のタイル (Mokuba no Tairu, "carousel horse tiles") |
The name is the same in the US and UK versions. The UK text differs only in spelling and small wording details: it writes "colours" and "coloured", and asks you to rotate the tiles "so as to match up all the colours". The tiles and the answer are the same in the US and UK English versions.
Wrong Puzzle 087?
- Daily Puzzle 087 is Dinosaurs 02, from the St. Bronto's set.
- Puzzle 086, Even Deal, is the puzzle before this one, hidden inside the Casino. If yours is about number cards on a card table, that's the one you've got.
- Puzzle 088, Glass Arrows, is the other puzzle at the Carousel. You start it from the roller coaster, not the carousel.
- Puzzle 089, Pumpkin Spinners, and Puzzle 090, Loose Connection, are the two park puzzles at Pumpkin Spinners, the next area along.
- Merry-Go-Tiles 2 is Layton's Challenge 145, a harder version with six horse colors where you can both rotate and move the tiles.
- Puzzle 87 in another Layton game is a different puzzle. If yours doesn't show nine tiles with halves of horses on them, you're in the wrong game.
Where you find it
In Chapter 5, the group goes to Pumpkin Park at night. At the entrance, Yukkles the clown checks your puzzle count: "You must have solved at least 50 puzzles to ride the rides here." Once you've solved 50, he hands over free passes and you can go in. Your objective becomes "Investigate the Attractions!", and the Carousel is the first area inside the park. Tap the carousel itself. Emmy says, "I don't see anything out of the ordinary with the carousel." Layton reads out the words "A new spin on the miraculous"..., and Luke says, "Professor...look at that picture there." Layton answers, "Hm... It appears to be a puzzle. A very astute observation, Luke!" Then the puzzle starts.
You have to solve it to move the story on. The story continues only when all four park puzzles are solved: this one, Glass Arrows from the roller coaster at the Carousel, and Pumpkin Spinners and Loose Connection at Pumpkin Spinners. You can solve them in any order. The carousel keeps offering this puzzle until you solve it.
The Carousel has four hint coins, all in the normal view: on the pointed roof of the small stall at the left (1), on top of the lamp post in front of the striped arch (2), in the dragon's pink flame on the building at the right (3) and at the very top of the carousel canopy (4). Each coin can be collected only once.
When the horses won't match up
- A tile won't turn. Touch the tile and slide the stylus around it, as if you were turning a dial. It turns a quarter turn at a time.
- You're trying to move a tile. The tiles stay in their places. Only the way each one faces changes.
- Half-horses around the outside don't match anything. That's how it should be. Only the 12 places where two tiles meet need a complete horse.
- A horse looks complete but the answer is wrong. Check that the front half and the back half are exactly the same color, and that you haven't joined two fronts or two backs.
- You can't find the puzzle. It's at the Carousel in Pumpkin Park, in Chapter 5 at night: tap the carousel itself. The roller coaster at the same spot gives you a different puzzle.
Hints, one at a time
These are the game's own hints, word for word from the North American version and in the same order. Open only the next one you need. In the game, Hints 1 to 3 cost one hint coin each and the Super Hint costs two.
Hint 1: where to begin
Actually, if you know the correct rotation of just one tile, all the rest should fall into place.
The problem is how to work out if a tile is correct. Try to rotate them around a bit and see for yourself!
Hint 2: tiles that stay put
Of the nine tiles, there are two you don't need to rotate.
You can work out which these are by just taking each tile in turn and rotating everything around it to see if it all matches up.
Hint 3: the central column
The three tiles in the central column must all be rotated, so you'll have to try the tiles on the left or right to use as a focal point.
Super Hint: the outer columns
The tiles in the left-hand column must all be rotated as well. This means that two of the three tiles on the right-hand side are fine as they are.
With this info, you should have it worked out in no time!
Answer and full solution
The answer below says how to turn each of the nine tiles, explains why it works and shows the finished board. Open it when you're ready.
Show the answer
Answer: leave the top-right and middle-right tiles as they are, and turn the other seven. Turn the top-left, top-middle, middle-left and center tiles a quarter turn counterclockwise. Turn the bottom-left and bottom-middle tiles a half turn. Turn the bottom-right tile a quarter turn clockwise.
| Tile | Turn | Same as |
|---|---|---|
| Top left | A quarter turn counterclockwise | Three quarter turns clockwise |
| Top middle | A quarter turn counterclockwise | Three quarter turns clockwise |
| Top right | Leave it | No turn |
| Middle left | A quarter turn counterclockwise | Three quarter turns clockwise |
| Center | A quarter turn counterclockwise | Three quarter turns clockwise |
| Middle right | Leave it | No turn |
| Bottom left | A half turn | Two quarter turns either way |
| Bottom middle | A half turn | Two quarter turns either way |
| Bottom right | A quarter turn clockwise | Three quarter turns counterclockwise |
Why it works. The right-hand column is the place to start, as the Super Hint says. The top-right and middle-right tiles already face the right way, and the horse where they meet is already complete. From there, you can fix the neighboring tiles one at a time: turn each one until the horses along its edges with the tiles you've already fixed are complete, and the rest fall into place, just as Hint 1 says. The bottom-right tile needs a quarter turn clockwise, and every tile in the left and middle columns has to turn, which matches Hint 3 and the Super Hint.
Step by step:
- Leave the top-right and middle-right tiles alone.
- Turn the bottom-right tile a quarter turn clockwise.
- Turn the top-middle and center tiles a quarter turn counterclockwise, and the bottom-middle tile a half turn.
- Turn the top-left and middle-left tiles a quarter turn counterclockwise, and the bottom-left tile a half turn.
- Check all 12 places where two tiles meet: each should show one complete horse in a single color. Then submit.
The game confirms it: "Correct! The pattern looks so neat and tidy now that it's all lined up right!"
If it still doesn't work out:
- You turned a quarter-turn tile the wrong way. A quarter turn clockwise and a quarter turn counterclockwise end up facing opposite ways. Only where the tile ends up counts, so three quarter turns one way are the same as one quarter turn the other way.
- You turned the top-right or middle-right tile. Turn it back to how it started; those two stay as they are.
- A bottom tile still looks wrong. The bottom-left and bottom-middle tiles need a full half turn, so they end up upside down compared with the start.
Picarats, hints and hint coins
Merry-Go-Tiles shows 45 picarats when it starts. The puzzle can award 45, 41 or 36 picarats. Wrong answers may reduce the picarat value. If you quit, Layton says, "I wonder what is really going on here..." When you come back to try again, he says, "I imagine we'll figure out what our villain is up to if we solve this puzzle..." A wrong answer brings "Too bad." and then "You must have missed a tile somewhere along the line."
Hints cost hint coins, not picarats. Hints 1 to 3 cost one hint coin each and the Super Hint costs two, five in total. The Carousel's four coins cover Hints 1 to 3 with one coin left over, so you'll need a coin saved from earlier for the Super Hint, or you can use the free hints on this page.
Does it unlock anything?
Solving it doesn't give you an item, but it does give you one of the four park clues. After the puzzle, Emmy says, "Voila! I found this underneath one of the carousel horses, Professor!" It's a card with a picture of the Mask of Chaos on it. When all four park puzzles are solved, Luke says, "Professor, we have four of these cards now. Let's take a closer look at them." Layton replies, "Yes... Together they form a map that points to that tower on top of the hill." Your objective then becomes "Head to Topsy Tower!"
Versions
- Nintendo 3DS family: this page covers the 3DS game. You turn the tiles by sliding the stylus on the touch screen, and the top screen shows a pair of carousel horses.
- US and UK English versions: the tiles, the colors and the answer are the same, and so is the name. The UK text differs only in spelling and small details of wording.
The scene around the puzzle
When the puzzle is solved, Layton says, "Interesting." Emmy asks, "What is it, Professor?" and Layton answers, "The puzzle is based around carousel horses. That must be a clue." While Emmy takes a closer look, Luke asks, "Do you think that puzzle was really the work of the Masked Gentleman?" Layton replies, "He certainly has a love for presentation. And it's quite a clever way of challenging us to find him." When Emmy comes back with the card, Luke says, "Is that... It has a picture of the Mask of Chaos on it!" and Layton concludes, "Clearly a calling card. We'll need more to go on than just this one clue."
FAQ
Where is the answer to Puzzle 087?
It's in the Answer and full solution section above, hidden until you open it. If you only want a push, open the hints one at a time first.
What is Puzzle 087 called?
Merry-Go-Tiles, in both the North American and UK versions. In Japanese it's 木馬のタイル.
Where is Puzzle 087?
At the Carousel in Pumpkin Park, Monte d'Or, in Chapter 5 at night. Tap the carousel while your objective is "Investigate the Attractions!"
How do I turn a tile?
Touch the tile and slide the stylus around it. It turns a quarter turn at a time and stays in its place.
How many picarats is Puzzle 087 worth?
It shows 45 picarats when it starts. The puzzle can award 45, 41 or 36 picarats. Wrong answers may reduce the picarat value.
Is Daily Puzzle 087 the same as Puzzle 087?
No. It's a different puzzle, listed under Wrong Puzzle 087?. Story Puzzle 087 is the carousel tile puzzle in Pumpkin Park.
More Miracle Mask puzzles
- Puzzle 088: Glass Arrows
- Puzzle 086: Even Deal
- Puzzle 089: Pumpkin Spinners
- Puzzle 090: Loose Connection
- Puzzle 085: Slot Sequence
- Puzzle 084: Neon Orange
- Puzzle 083: Settle the Scores
- Puzzle 082: Rainbow Repair
- Puzzle 081: King Arthur's Sword
- Puzzle 072: A Cup of Tiles
- Puzzle 044: Suit Crates
- Puzzle 60: Dangerous Holes
- Puzzle 100: Gate to the Ruins!
- Puzzle 113: Chip Champions
- Puzzle 118: Evenly Matched 3
- Puzzle 122: Kitty Solitaire 3
For the rest of the game's puzzles, see the Miracle Mask puzzle index.