More than a variant, it is a true game in its own right having, however, the same common feature of never letting the player win. The three little boxes are substituted for three playing cards (typically 2 figures and an ace, or one figure and two cards without figures), which are held by the “handler” of the game (2 in one hand and the third in the other, and passed from one hand to the other to be dropped face down on the table; the request to the unlucky player on duty is to locate where the single card (ace or figure) is.

The trick lies in the fact that the two cards held overlapping in the same hand are dropped in reverse order of appearance; that is, the higher card (near the palm of the hand) is dropped first and only then the lower card is dropped. This is possible because, contrary to what is perceived by the observer, the two cards are not held in the hand on top of each other, but are instead held slightly apart so that the top card is quickly slipped out making it appear to be the bottom card. Because this is done imperceptibly, the observer will believe that the first card to be dropped is the bottom one. But even when the player, either by mistake or by pure chance points to the right card, the “handler” can make a different card appear and still make the player lose by applying the so-called Mexican reversal, the card on the table is turned over using a card that the handler is holding and making a gesture that allows the incriminated card to eventually be in his hand and on the table turned over the one that was in his hand. In other words, the player can only ever lose. spoiler