3D Photo Cube Puzzle is an iPhone puzzle app built on SceneKit. Set any photo or color on each of the six cube faces, tap Shuffle to scramble the cube with 20 random moves, then swipe slices back into place to solve it. Each photo is divided into a 3×3 grid of stickers — when every cubie returns to its correct position and orientation, the six faces reassemble and the success overlay appears.
Each of the six faces — front, right, back, left, top, and bottom — can be set to a photo from your library or a color from a color picker. In photo mode, the image is sliced into a 3×3 grid and each piece becomes the sticker for one cubie on that face.
The cube and its stickers are rendered in full 3D using SceneKit. Drag anywhere on the background to orbit the camera and view the cube from any angle. Selected cubies and their associated slices glow with a blue-white emission highlight so the active selection is always visible.
Tap any cubie to select it, then tap again to cycle through X-axis, Z-axis, and Y-axis slice modes. The entire slice highlights. Swipe on the cube while a slice is selected to rotate it — the direction is determined by projecting the cube's motion vector onto the screen so the swipe feels correct from any camera angle.
Tap the Shuffle button to trigger 20 rapid randomized rotations that scramble the cube in a smooth animation. When every cubie returns to its original position and orientation, the puzzle is solved and a congratulations overlay appears. Tap OK to play again.
When you set a photo on a face in Settings, the app crops it into a 3×3 grid using the image's pixel dimensions. Each of the nine crops is mapped to the corresponding cubie sticker on that face. Scramble the cube and the photo fragments scatter across the surface. Solve the puzzle and all nine pieces snap back into their correct positions, completing the image.
Drag anywhere that is not a cubie to rotate the camera around the cube. The camera orbits on horizontal and vertical axes, giving you a full view of all six faces. Because the swipe-to-rotate direction uses a 3D projection of the rotation axis onto the screen plane, the controls feel correct regardless of which direction you are viewing the cube from.
The first tap on a cubie selects that single piece. A second tap switches to X-axis slice mode — the entire column of cubies at the same X coordinate highlights. Another tap switches to Z-axis, then Y-axis, then back to single selection. Swipe while in a slice mode to rotate that layer. The selection clears automatically after the swipe completes.
Open Settings from the gear icon in the top-right corner. For each face, choose between Photo and Color mode, pick a photo from your library or select a color with the color picker, and set the background color of the scene. A Reset to Defaults button restores all six faces to the default illustrations and the background to white. Tapping Done rebuilds the cube from scratch in its solved state.
Tap the gear icon to open Settings. For each of the six faces, choose Photo mode and select an image from your library, or choose Color mode and pick a color. Tap Done to build the cube.
Tap the Shuffle button at the bottom of the screen. Twenty randomized rotations run in rapid succession, scrambling the cube. The puzzle is now in play.
Tap a cubie to select it. Tap again to cycle through X, Z, and Y slice modes — the highlighted layer shows which slice will move. Swipe on the cube in slice mode to rotate that layer. Drag the background to orbit the camera and check any face.
"I set six photos from a trip across the faces and it turned a regular cube puzzle into something personal. Watching the photo fragments scatter when you shuffle and then come back together when you solve it is genuinely satisfying. The camera orbit makes it easy to check the faces you can't see from the default angle."
"Solid Rubik's-style puzzle game on iPhone. The slice selection by tapping cycles through axes in a way that makes sense once you get used to it, and the swipe direction adjusts based on camera angle which is a nice detail. Highlight glow makes it clear which layer you're about to move."
"Simple to pick up and the photo feature makes it feel different from every other cube puzzle app. The shuffle animation is smooth and the success screen gives you a real sense of completion. Good for a few minutes of focus when you need a break."
Find answers to common questions below.