New Year's Party Puzzles

[S.J.]

Across the island, there's a flurry of activity as Tom Nook, Isabelle, and the villagers prepare a grand celebration to ring in the new year! Decorations are half-hung, schedules are scattered, and someone has misplaced the party guest list. They could use some help... and that's where you come in! Put your thinking cap on and help untangle their party plans one puzzle at a time!​

How to Participate

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Three puzzles will be released over the course of the event, each with its own instructions and submission deadline. When a puzzle opens, follow the instructions provided, solve the puzzle, and submit your completed answer to the New Year's Party Puzzle Submissions board before the listed deadline! Each correctly answered puzzle will award event currency to spend in the Shop!

Task	Puzzle opens	Submission deadline
Puzzle 1: Hugh's Hidden Holiday Message	Sunday, 28 December 2025	Thursday, 01 January 2026 at 11:59 PM EST Closed: Answer Sheet
Puzzle 2: Gala's Glittering Guest List	Friday, 02 January 2026	Tuesday, 06 January 2026 at 11:59 PM EST Closed: Answer Sheet
Puzzle 3: Lyman's Lost Logic	Wednesday, 07 January 2026	Sunday, 11 January 2026 at 11:59 PM EST

Submission Guidelines

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• Each puzzle is an individual task. Please don't share answers or discuss solutions with others.
• Please don't post hints in this thread!
• Once you've completed your puzzle, submit your answer to the New Year's Party Puzzles Submissions board by the listed deadline.
• You may only submit one answer per puzzle. Editing a submission is not allowed.
• Edited submissions or submissions posted after the deadline will not be eligible for event currency.
• Follow all instructions that come with a puzzle, including:
  • Selecting the correct "Round" number in the submission post.
  • Writing your TBT username on the puzzle, if required.
  • Filling in the puzzle completely if asked.
  • Submitting before the deadline.

Most importantly, have fun!


Rewards

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Each correctly answered puzzle awards 4 Countdown Coins!
Participating in all three puzzles awards 2 Lucky Tickets, regardless of whether your submissions are correct!
(Maximum possible currency is 12 Countdown Coins and 2 Lucky Tickets.)


FAQ

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Will there be a prize for those who solve the puzzle correctly before anyone else?
Sorry, no!

Can I print the puzzle and submit a photo of it completed instead?
Absolutely!

I forgot to write my username on my puzzle. Can I edit my submission?
If you forget to add your username to your completed puzzle, contact the event host (@S.J.). Don't edit your submission unless a staff member instructs you to do so.

What if I’m stuck or don’t understand a puzzle?
If you're unclear on the puzzle's rules or instructions, we can try to explain them in a different way. However, we can't provide hints or help with solving the puzzle.

 

[S.J.]

Puzzle 1: Hugh's Hidden Holiday Message


Hugh's excited to ring in the new year! He's got a toast prepared, but after getting distracted with too many snacks, it's been scrambled amongst this puzzle!​

Find all the listed words in the word search. Words may appear in a straight line in any direction: up, down, left, right, diagonally, and forwards or backwards. After all the words are found, read the remaining letters from left to right, top to bottom. These letters spell out a hidden phrase. Write the phrase into the spaces provided at the bottom of the page to reveal Hugh's New Year's message!

Submit the solved message to the New Year's Party Puzzles Submissions board no later than Thursday, 01 January 2026 at 11:59 PM EST. (Note: When using the submission board, your "thread title" and "message" do not matter. Under "Your Submission" you should include the solved hidden message, including correct spelling and grammar. Under "Round #", you should select "Round 1".)

Submission checklist:
You are submitting the solved message in the box saying "Your Submission" in a new thread in New Year's Party Puzzles Submissions board.
You have checked that all spelling and grammar are correct.
You have selected "Round 1" in the submission post.
You are submitting before Thursday, 01 January 2026 at 11:59 PM EST.​

 

[Ginny Potter]

Question. How do I do it if I'm on mobile?

 

[Suguri]

Question. How do I do it if I'm on mobile?

I did it on mobile too, I just saved the image to my phone and used the built-in editor in my Photos app to work on the puzzle.

 

[Ginny Potter]

I got a limited storage space on my phone but I'll print it tomorrow at work if I can

 

[Roxxy]

Always easy when you know how. If I didn’t have help I couldn’t take part

 

[Captain Jigglypuff]

I got a limited storage space on my phone but I'll print it tomorrow at work if I can

I printed it out myself because I figured it’d be easier to see which letters were left behind after the puzzle was solved.

 

[Roxxy]

Wish I could print out but on holiday and this needs to be completed before I’m back at work. I’m “old school” (or just old )

 

[S.J.]

Question. How do I do it if I'm on mobile?

Everyone has already been very help and mentioned the best options, but I'll just reiterate it here for anyone else!

On mobile, you can download the image, open the image in your gallery and choose "edit", and then use one of the pen tools. If you have access to a printer, printing it is also a good way to do it!

 

[oath2order]

I LOVE CROSSWORDS.

That was fun, thank you.

 

[Corrie]

This was super fun! I miss word finds! (I did it on desktop at work LOL)

 

[Suguri]

I got a bit carried away with the puzzle and just realized I forgot to meet one of the requirements. Would I be allowed to fix it?

EDIT: Oops I forgot to read the FAQ ^^;

 

[Giddy]

That was a lot of fun~☆

 

[RoxiePico]

That was kinda hard, but it felt good to finally crack it.

 

[Roxxy]

Love the puzzle! ATM the phrase is word salad but I will get it

 

[Rainy.Nights]

I love puzzles! Just sent my answer for the first one.

 

[-Blue-]

This was a lovely puzzle to keep my brain not being poo this dreary winter Thank you, this was a lot of fun!

 

[Ginny Potter]

Unfortunately I wouldn't be able to do this due to trying to find my mom's cat in the cold

 

[Dunquixote]

I just submitted my answer. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to see the page with the highlighted words and answer so I attached that to my post.

It was hard for me to see which letters were left after I found the words since I used a highlighter with my notes app and it was really messy . I hope my answer is right!

 

[toxapex]

Hoping my answer is right... Hugh is urging me to drink my Ovaltine

(disclaimer: this is a joke not a hint)