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The text file used for creating a Decipher puzzle uses the extension .decipher.txt; for example, famous-quote.decipher.txt. This file can be modified by any standard plain-text editor. If you are using a Word Processing program like MS Word or Apple Pages, ensure that you export the output to a text file format, and use the .decipher.txt extension. Do not use a .docx, .doc or other document file formats.

Decipher files can be created in two formats:

  1. Quote format : In this format, you only provide the quote, and PuzzleMe designs the grid for you. This format is more convenient for creating the puzzles.
  2. Grid format : In this format, you have complete control over the grid design. This format allows you more control over the grid design.

By default, the title of the puzzle is set to "Decipher". After importing, you can use the creator form to update the title, attribution and other information.

Editing a puzzle

Please don’t edit the grid or clues after the puzzle is imported. Doing so would make the puzzle unplayable. If you need to change any letters inside the grid, please import a new puzzle.

Quote format​

Sample puzzle file using the quote format
  • The import file must contain two lines.
  • Line 1 should contain the puzzle text. This text should be between 10 and 300 characters including spaces. No punctuation marks are allowed and if present, they will be removed.
  • Line 2 should contain the number of rows that should be between 3 and 12. If this value is omitted or invalid, an optimal value will be auto-calculated.
  • The pre-revealed cells will be auto-jumbled and this jumble will vary with each import. You could re-upload the file if you would like a different jumble.
  • Lastly, as the grid size is limited to 25 by 25, we need you to carefully consider the number of characters in the puzzle text and the number of specified rows. For instance, if the number of characters in the puzzle text is 100 and the number of specified rows is 3, the import will fail as the number of characters per row is 100/3 ~ 34 while it is required to be 25 or less.

Click here to download a sample file.

Grid format​

Sample puzzle file using the grid format
  • The total number of characters in the puzzle text should be between 10 and 300. Underscores act as spaces. No punctuation marks are allowed. If detected, the import process will fail.
  • As the grid size is limited to 25 by 25, all rows must be of the same length with a maximum of 25 characters per row.
  • The number of rows should be between 3 and 12. If less than 2 rows are given, the importer will assume Format 1, which could lead to inconsistencies in the imported puzzle.
  • Lastly, please note that words can wrap across lines. If two consecutive words are not separated by an underscore, they will be considered as one word. For example, in the file below:
ALL_THAT_GLITTERS
IS_NOT_GOLD______
_________________

GLITTERSIS would be considered a single word even though they are on separate lines as the underscore between “GLITTERS” and “IS” is missing. The correct specification would be: 

ALL_THAT_GLITTERS
_IS_NOT_GOLD_____
_________________

Click here to download a sample file.