Theseus and the Minotaur
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Theseus and the Minotaur is a type of logic maze designed by Robert Abbott.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In this maze, the player acts as Theseus, the king of Athens who is attempting to escape the Labyrinth. The main difference between this and the standard type of labyrinth, beyond the fact that it is set on a grid, is the fact that the maze is not empty, but also contains a Minotaur who hunts the player down, taking two steps for every one the player takes.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/>
While the Minotaur is faster than the player, his moves are predictable and often inefficient: they are determined by checking to see if he can get closer to the player by moving horizontally, then checking to see if he can get any closer by moving vertically.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/> If neither move would place him closer to the player, the Minotaur skips his turn.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/> Theseus may also skip his turn.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/>
This type of maze was first published in 1990 in Robert Abbott's book Mad Mazes.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/> The idea was later published in the British magazine Games & Puzzles.<ref name=robert-abbotts-notes/><ref name=theseus-and-minotaur/>