A circular maze puzzle visualization featuring concentric rings connected by radial passages. Unlike rectangular mazes, this design creates a unique solving experience where the player navigates inward through ring-shaped corridors. The maze has an entry point on the outer edge and a goal at the center, with algorithmically generated walls ensuring exactly one solvable path.
""" anyplot.ai
maze-circular: Circular Maze Puzzle
Library: matplotlib 3.10.9 | Python 3.13.13
Quality: 92/100 | Updated: 2026-05-20
"""
import os
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
import numpy as np
from matplotlib.collections import LineCollection
from matplotlib.patches import Arc, Wedge
# Theme tokens
THEME = os.getenv("ANYPLOT_THEME", "light")
PAGE_BG = "#FAF8F1" if THEME == "light" else "#1A1A17"
ELEVATED_BG = "#FFFDF6" if THEME == "light" else "#242420"
INK = "#1A1A17" if THEME == "light" else "#F0EFE8"
GOAL_COLOR = "#009E73" # Okabe-Ito position 1
ENTRY_COLOR = "#C475FD" # Okabe-Ito position 2
# Data — Fibonacci sector progression for naturally varied corridor widths
np.random.seed(13)
rings = 6
sectors_per_ring = [5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 34] # Cap outer ring at 34 for solvable corridor widths
inner_radius = 0.5
ring_width = 0.25 # Wider corridors for comfortable pen-solving
# Initialize maze structure
radial_walls = []
ring_passages = []
for r in range(rings):
radial_walls.append([True] * sectors_per_ring[r])
ring_passages.append([False] * sectors_per_ring[r])
# Modified Prim's algorithm — guarantees exactly one solution path
connected = [[False] * sectors_per_ring[r] for r in range(rings)]
connected[0][0] = True
frontier = []
for s in range(sectors_per_ring[0]):
if s > 0:
frontier.append((0, s, "radial", 0, s - 1))
frontier.append((1, s * sectors_per_ring[1] // sectors_per_ring[0], "ring", 0, s))
while frontier:
idx = np.random.randint(len(frontier))
r, s, conn_type, src_r, src_s = frontier.pop(idx)
if connected[r][s]:
continue
connected[r][s] = True
if conn_type == "radial":
radial_walls[r][min(s, src_s)] = False
else:
ring_passages[src_r][src_s] = True
num_sectors = sectors_per_ring[r]
next_s = (s + 1) % num_sectors
if not connected[r][next_s]:
frontier.append((r, next_s, "radial", r, s))
prev_s = (s - 1) % num_sectors
if not connected[r][prev_s]:
frontier.append((r, prev_s, "radial", r, s))
if r < rings - 1:
outer_sectors = sectors_per_ring[r + 1]
ratio = outer_sectors / num_sectors
for outer_s in range(int(s * ratio), int((s + 1) * ratio)):
if not connected[r + 1][outer_s % outer_sectors]:
frontier.append((r + 1, outer_s % outer_sectors, "ring", r, s))
if r > 0:
inner_sectors = sectors_per_ring[r - 1]
inner_s = int(s * inner_sectors / num_sectors)
if not connected[r - 1][inner_s]:
frontier.append((r - 1, inner_s, "radial", r - 1, inner_s))
entry_sector = np.random.randint(sectors_per_ring[-1])
# Plot — square canvas, ideal for circular maze
outer_r = inner_radius + rings * ring_width
margin = outer_r * 1.38
fig, ax = plt.subplots(figsize=(6, 6), dpi=400, facecolor=PAGE_BG)
ax.set_facecolor(PAGE_BG)
ax.set_aspect("equal")
ax.set_xlim(-margin, margin)
ax.set_ylim(-margin, margin)
ax.axis("off")
wall_color = INK
wall_width = 2.5
# Fill corridor area with ELEVATED_BG — distinguishes maze space from background canvas
ax.add_patch(plt.Circle((0, 0), outer_r, fill=True, facecolor=ELEVATED_BG, edgecolor="none", zorder=1))
# Alternating ring fills — subtle depth to distinguish inner rings from outer
for r in range(rings):
if r % 2 == 0:
r_inner = inner_radius + r * ring_width
r_outer = r_inner + ring_width
ax.add_patch(
Wedge((0, 0), r_outer, 0, 360, width=ring_width, facecolor=INK, edgecolor="none", alpha=0.05, zorder=2)
)
# Outer boundary with entry gap (two arcs bracketing the entry sector)
entry_angle_start = entry_sector * 360 / sectors_per_ring[-1]
entry_angle_end = (entry_sector + 1) * 360 / sectors_per_ring[-1]
if entry_angle_start > 0:
ax.add_patch(
Arc(
(0, 0),
2 * outer_r,
2 * outer_r,
theta1=0,
theta2=entry_angle_start,
color=wall_color,
linewidth=wall_width,
zorder=4,
)
)
ax.add_patch(
Arc(
(0, 0),
2 * outer_r,
2 * outer_r,
theta1=entry_angle_end,
theta2=360,
color=wall_color,
linewidth=wall_width,
zorder=4,
)
)
# Ring walls — arc segments at ring boundaries with passage gaps
for r in range(rings - 1):
ring_r = inner_radius + r * ring_width
num_sectors = sectors_per_ring[r]
sector_angle = 360 / num_sectors
arc_r = ring_r + ring_width
for s in range(num_sectors):
if not ring_passages[r][s]:
ax.add_patch(
Arc(
(0, 0),
2 * arc_r,
2 * arc_r,
theta1=s * sector_angle,
theta2=(s + 1) * sector_angle,
color=wall_color,
linewidth=wall_width,
zorder=4,
)
)
# Radial walls — batched as LineCollection for efficient compound-path rendering
radial_segments = []
for r in range(rings):
num_sectors = sectors_per_ring[r]
sector_angle = 360 / num_sectors
r_inner = inner_radius + r * ring_width
r_outer = r_inner + ring_width
for s in range(num_sectors):
if radial_walls[r][s]:
angle = np.radians((s + 1) * sector_angle)
radial_segments.append(
[[r_inner * np.cos(angle), r_inner * np.sin(angle)], [r_outer * np.cos(angle), r_outer * np.sin(angle)]]
)
if radial_segments:
ax.add_collection(LineCollection(radial_segments, colors=wall_color, linewidths=wall_width, zorder=4))
# Inner boundary and goal
ax.add_patch(
Arc(
(0, 0),
2 * inner_radius,
2 * inner_radius,
theta1=0,
theta2=360,
color=wall_color,
linewidth=wall_width,
zorder=5,
)
)
ax.add_patch(
plt.Circle(
(0, 0), inner_radius * 0.65, fill=True, facecolor=GOAL_COLOR, edgecolor=wall_color, linewidth=2, zorder=6
)
)
ax.text(0, 0, "GOAL", ha="center", va="center", fontsize=8, fontweight="bold", color="white", zorder=7)
# Entry marker
entry_mid_angle = np.radians((entry_sector + 0.5) * 360 / sectors_per_ring[-1])
ax.text(
(outer_r + 0.22) * np.cos(entry_mid_angle),
(outer_r + 0.22) * np.sin(entry_mid_angle),
"START",
ha="center",
va="center",
fontsize=7,
fontweight="bold",
color=ENTRY_COLOR,
zorder=7,
)
# Style
ax.set_title("maze-circular · python · matplotlib · anyplot.ai", fontsize=12, fontweight="medium", color=INK, pad=15)
plt.tight_layout()
plt.savefig(f"plot-{THEME}.png", dpi=400, bbox_inches="tight", facecolor=PAGE_BG)
Part of Circular Maze Puzzle on anyplot.ai.