Door 6 · Brain
Light Show: Day 6 of Sunburnt Santa
Watch the Christmas lights on the house flash a pattern, then tap them back in the same order. Every round is a brand new pattern one light longer than the last, and one wrong tap ends the show.
How to play Light Show
- Watch the house lights flash, then tap them back in the same order.
- Each round is a brand new pattern, one light longer than the last. One wrong tap and the show is over.
- Answer quickly for a speed bonus.
Scoring
| What | Points |
|---|---|
| Each light in a pattern you repeat correctly | 100 |
| Speed bonus, per light, for a quick answer | 50 |
| Wrong light, or running out of time | ends the round |
A 5-light pattern is worth 500, or 750 with the speed bonus. The speed bonus needs the whole pattern tapped back in about half a second per light; you have far longer than that before time runs out.
Stars: the three targets
Stars don't lock anything; they show how you're going, and doors with at least one star count towards the bonus games.
Tips for three stars
- Three stars means clearing an 11-light pattern with the speed bonus on every round, or a 13-light pattern without it. The bonus adds half again, so it's worth going quick on the short early patterns.
- Each round is a fresh pattern, not the last one plus a light, so don't try to remember the previous round. Say the positions to yourself as they flash ("left, middle, far right") and tap the rhythm back.
- A light never flashes twice in a row, which rules out one option at every step. The flashes also get quicker each round, from 0.6 seconds down to 0.3, so watch the whole house rather than chasing each bulb with your eyes.
The real story: how Christmas lights went electric
Electric Christmas lights are older than you might think. On 22 December 1882, Edward H. Johnson, a vice-president of the Edison Electric Light Company, lit a tree in his New York parlour with 80 hand-wired bulbs in red, white and blue [1]. The tree sat on a revolving box, so the lights blinked on and off as it turned; a newspaper reporter described a "continuous twinkling of dancing colors" [1]. Ready-made strings arrived in 1903, when General Electric sold the first prewired sets. The bulbs were wired in series, so one dead bulb blacked out the whole string [1], which anyone who has untangled old lights will recognise.
In Australia the lights go up in summer and often outdoors, so if you're decking out your own house, Energy Safe Victoria's advice is to use only lights rated for outdoor use (at least IP23), look for the regulatory compliance mark, keep leads away from pools and walkways, and switch the display off before bed [2].
In Light Show the house does the twinkling and you do the remembering.
Read more: Christmas in Australia: the complete guide.
When it opens
Door 6 opens on day 6 of your own calendar (your Day 1 is the day you first play), and for everyone by 6 December. Play the door before it to open it. Once it's open you can replay it as often as you like, and after Christmas Eve all 24 doors stay open. How the calendar works.
Play now
Same kind of game: Secret Santa Shuffle, Thong Pairs, True Blue Quiz.
Sources for the real story
- When They Electrified Christmas, IEEE Spectrum
- Christmas light safety, Energy Safe Victoria