About Slate XVI

Slate XVI began as a Christmas gift.

At eleven years old, founder Josiah Stevens set out to create an intellectual game his father couldn't solve in a single sitting. The first version was cut from cardboard and never gifted. Seven years later, during his first year of college, Stevens returned to the original idea, transforming it into a handcrafted stone-inspired edition that he presented alongside the first cardboard prototype. That second model would become the foundation for the Slate XVI produced today.

What began as a personal gift became something much larger.

Unlike traditional games that are mastered and forgotten, Slate XVI was designed to be explored. Built on a sixteen-space octagonal grid with sixteen uniquely shaped pieces, the game rewards experimentation rather than memorization. Every solution reveals another possibility, inviting players to challenge their instincts and discover new ways of thinking.

Its greatest surprise has been its depth. What appears deceptively simple quickly becomes an exercise in patience, observation, and perspective. The moment a complete solution is discovered rarely marks the end of the experience—it becomes the beginning of another search.

That philosophy sits at the heart of Slate XVI.

In a world increasingly dominated by digital entertainment, Slate XVI was created to offer something slower. An experience that rewards curiosity, persistence, and thoughtful exploration without requiring instructions, tutorials, or a learning curve. Anyone can begin, but every solution must be earned.

Each Slate XVI is individually manufactured by hand. From machining the individual components to sanding, painting, assembly, and packaging, every game is finished with the same attention to detail that shaped its earliest production model.

Today, Slate XVI is more than an intellectual game. It is an ongoing exploration shared by a growing community of players who discover new solutions, challenge one another, and contribute to a question that has remained unanswered since the very beginning:

How many solutions are still waiting to be found?