Gameplay|And the ‘Super Mega’ Crossword Contest Winners Are…
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Nearly 8,000 Puzzlemania solvers submitted for a chance to win $1,000
By Will Shortz
When we planned December’s “Super Mega” crossword contest, we wondered, “Would solvers want to do a puzzle that’s a giant, wall-size, Brobdingnagian 67x41 grid, with almost 800 answers? And would they enjoy it?”
Judging by your responses … yes!
Joel fa*gliano, The Times’s digital puzzles editor, created the grid in about four weeks. Accompanying it were seven minipuzzles by the composer and quizmaster Greg Pliska, whose nonpuzzling work you may be familiar with. He orchestrated the theme music for NPR’s “Morning Edition,” “CBS Evening News” and “Face the Nation” as well as for numerous films, musicals and plays.
The challenge was to solve the crossword and minipuzzles, then follow the instructions to get a final appropriate answer.
The relevant crossword clues and answers were as follows:
92-Across
Step 1: Solve the highlighted Mega words and arrange them in Column A according to …Answer: A HIDDEN PROGRESSION
633-Across
Step 2: Take the seven minipuzzle answers and …
Answer: MATCH THEM TO COLUMN A
149-Down
Step 3: To find the meta-answer, take the …
Answer: LAST LETTERS OF THE ‘MEGA’ WORDS
194-Down
Step 4: … and read them together with the …
Answer: FIRST LETTERS OF THE ‘MINI’ LIST
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