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1\title Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection
2
3\cfg{winhelp-filename}{puzzles.hlp}
4\cfg{winhelp-contents-titlepage}{Contents}
5
6\cfg{text-filename}{puzzles.txt}
7
8\cfg{html-contents-filename}{index.html}
9\cfg{html-template-filename}{%k.html}
10\cfg{html-index-filename}{docindex.html}
11\cfg{html-leaf-level}{1}
12\cfg{html-contents-depth-0}{1}
13\cfg{html-contents-depth-1}{2}
14\cfg{html-leaf-contains-contents}{true}
15
16\cfg{chm-filename}{puzzles.chm}
17\cfg{chm-contents-filename}{index.html}
18\cfg{chm-template-filename}{%k.html}
19\cfg{chm-head-end}{<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="chm.css">}
20\cfg{chm-extra-file}{chm.css}
21
22\cfg{info-filename}{puzzles.info}
23
24\cfg{ps-filename}{puzzles.ps}
25\cfg{pdf-filename}{puzzles.pdf}
26
27\define{by} \u00D7{x}
28
29\define{dash} \u2013{-}
30
31\define{times} \u00D7{*}
32
33\define{divide} \u00F7{/}
34
35\define{minus} \u2212{-}
36
37This is a collection of small one-player puzzle games.
38
39\copyright This manual is copyright 2004-2024 Simon Tatham. All rights
40reserved. You may distribute this documentation under the MIT licence.
41See \k{licence} for the licence text in full.
42
43\cfg{html-local-head}{<meta name="AppleTitle" content="Puzzles Help">}
44
45\C{intro} Introduction
46
47I wrote this collection because I thought there should be more small
48desktop toys available: little games you can pop up in a window and
49play for two or three minutes while you take a break from whatever
50else you were doing. And I was also annoyed that every time I found
51a good game on (say) \i{Unix}, it wasn't available the next time I
52was sitting at a \i{Windows} machine, or vice versa; so I arranged
53that everything in my personal puzzle collection will happily run on
54both, and have more recently done a port to \i{Mac OS X} as well. When I
55find (or perhaps invent) further puzzle games that I like, they'll
56be added to this collection and will immediately be available on
57both platforms. And if anyone feels like writing any other front
58ends \dash PocketPC, Mac OS pre-10, or whatever it might be \dash
59then all the games in this framework will immediately become
60available on another platform as well.
61
62The actual games in this collection were mostly not my invention; they
63are re-implementations of existing game concepts within my portable
64puzzle framework. I do not claim credit, in general, for inventing the
65rules of any of these puzzles. (I don't even claim authorship of all
66the code; some of the puzzles have been submitted by other authors.)
67
68This collection is distributed under the \i{MIT licence} (see
69\k{licence}). This means that you can do pretty much anything you like
70with the game binaries or the code, except pretending you wrote them
71yourself, or suing me if anything goes wrong.
72
73The most recent versions, and \i{source code}, can be found at
74\I{website}\W{https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/puzzles/}\cw{https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/puzzles/}.
75
76Please report \I{feedback}\i{bugs} to
77\W{mailto:anakin@pobox.com}\cw{anakin@pobox.com}.
78You might find it helpful to read this article before reporting a bug:
79
80\W{https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html}\cw{https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/bugs.html}
81
82\ii{Patches} are welcome. Especially if they provide a new front end
83(to make all these games run on another platform), or a new game.
84
85
86\C{common} \ii{Common features}
87
88This chapter describes features that are common to all the games.
89
90\H{common-actions} \I{controls}Common actions
91
92These actions are all available from the \I{Game menu}\q{Game} menu
93and via \I{keys}keyboard shortcuts, in addition to any game-specific
94actions.
95
96(On \i{Mac OS X}, to conform with local user interface standards, these
97actions are situated on the \I{File menu}\q{File} and \I{Edit
98menu}\q{Edit} menus instead.)
99
100\dt \ii\e{New game} (\q{N}, Ctrl+\q{N})
101
102\dd Starts a new game, with a random initial state.
103
104\dt \ii\e{Restart game}
105
106\dd Resets the current game to its initial state. (This can be undone.)
107
108\dt \ii\e{Load}
109
110\dd Loads a saved game from a file on disk.
111
112\dt \ii\e{Save}
113
114\dd Saves the current state of your game to a file on disk.
115
116\lcont{
117
118The Load and Save operations preserve your entire game
119history (so you can save, reload, and still Undo and Redo things you
120had done before saving).
121
122}
123
124\dt \I{printing, on Windows}\e{Print}
125
126\dd Where supported (currently only on Windows), brings up a dialog
127allowing you to print an arbitrary number of puzzles randomly
128generated from the current parameters, optionally including the
129current puzzle. (Only for puzzles which make sense to print, of
130course \dash it's hard to think of a sensible printable representation
131of Fifteen!)
132
133\dt \ii\e{Undo} (\q{U}, Ctrl+\q{Z}, Ctrl+\q{_}, \q{*})
134
135\dd Undoes a single move. (You can undo moves back to the start of the
136session.)
137
138\dt \ii\e{Redo} (\q{R}, Ctrl+\q{R}, \q{#})
139
140\dd Redoes a previously undone move.
141
142\dt \ii\e{Copy}
143
144\dd Copies the current state of your game to the clipboard in text
145format, so that you can paste it into (say) an e-mail client or a
146web message board if you're discussing the game with someone else.
147(Not all games support this feature.)
148
149\dt \ii\e{Solve}
150
151\dd Transforms the puzzle instantly into its solved state. For some
152games (Cube) this feature is not supported at all because it is of
153no particular use. For other games (such as Pattern), the solved
154state can be used to give you information, if you can't see how a
155solution can exist at all or you want to know where you made a
156mistake. For still other games (such as Sixteen), automatic solution
157tells you nothing about how to \e{get} to the solution, but it does
158provide a useful way to get there quickly so that you can experiment
159with set-piece moves and transformations.
160
161\lcont{
162
163Some games (such as Solo) are capable of solving a game ID you have
164typed in from elsewhere. Other games (such as Rectangles) cannot
165solve a game ID they didn't invent themself, but when they did
166invent the game ID they know what the solution is already. Still
167other games (Pattern) can solve \e{some} external game IDs, but only
168if they aren't too difficult.
169
170The \q{Solve} command adds the solved state to the end of the undo
171chain for the puzzle. In other words, if you want to go back to
172solving it yourself after seeing the answer, you can just press Undo.
173
174}
175
176\dt \I{exit}\ii\e{Quit} (\q{Q}, Ctrl+\q{Q})
177
178\dd Closes the application entirely.
179
180\dt \i\e{Preferences}
181
182\dd Where supported, brings up a dialog allowing you to configure
183personal preferences about a particular game. Some of these
184preferences will be specific to a particular game; others will be
185common to all games.
186
187\lcont{
188
189One option common to all games allows you to turn off the one-key
190shortcuts like \q{N} for new game or \q{Q} for quit, so that there's
191less chance of hitting them by accident. You can still access the same
192shortcuts with the Ctrl key.
193
194}
195
196\H{common-id} Specifying games with the \ii{game ID}
197
198There are two ways to save a game specification out of a puzzle and
199recreate it later, or recreate it in somebody else's copy of the
200same puzzle.
201
202The \q{\i{Specific}} and \q{\i{Random Seed}} options from the
203\I{Game menu}\q{Game} menu (or the \q{File} menu, on \i{Mac OS X}) each
204show a piece of text (a \q{game ID}) which is sufficient to
205reconstruct precisely the same game at a later date.
206
207You can enter either of these pieces of text back into the program
208(via the same \q{Specific} or \q{Random Seed} menu options) at a
209later point, and it will recreate the same game. You can also use
210either one as a \i{command line} argument (on Windows or Unix); see
211\k{common-cmdline} for more detail.
212
213The difference between the two forms is that a descriptive game ID
214is a literal \e{description} of the \i{initial state} of the game,
215whereas a random seed is just a piece of arbitrary text which was
216provided as input to the random number generator used to create the
217puzzle. This means that:
218
219\b Descriptive game IDs tend to be longer in many puzzles (although
220some, such as Cube (\k{cube}), only need very short descriptions).
221So a random seed is often a \e{quicker} way to note down the puzzle
222you're currently playing, or to tell it to somebody else so they can
223play the same one as you.
224
225\b Any text at all is a valid random seed. The automatically
226generated ones are fifteen-digit numbers, but anything will do; you
227can type in your full name, or a word you just made up, and a valid
228puzzle will be generated from it. This provides a way for two or
229more people to race to complete the same puzzle: you think of a
230random seed, then everybody types it in at the same time, and nobody
231has an advantage due to having seen the generated puzzle before
232anybody else.
233
234\b It is often possible to convert puzzles from other sources (such
235as \q{nonograms} or \q{sudoku} from newspapers) into descriptive
236game IDs suitable for use with these programs.
237
238\b Random seeds are not guaranteed to produce the same result if you
239use them with a different \i\e{version} of the puzzle program. This
240is because the generation algorithm might have been improved or
241modified in later versions of the code, and will therefore produce a
242different result when given the same sequence of random numbers. Use
243a descriptive game ID if you aren't sure that it will be used on the
244same version of the program as yours.
245
246\lcont{(Use the \q{About} menu option to find out the version number
247of the program. Programs with the same version number running on
248different platforms should still be random-seed compatible.)}
249
250\I{ID format}A descriptive game ID starts with a piece of text which
251encodes the \i\e{parameters} of the current game (such as grid
252size). Then there is a colon, and after that is the description of
253the game's initial state. A random seed starts with a similar string
254of parameters, but then it contains a hash sign followed by
255arbitrary data.
256
257If you enter a descriptive game ID, the program will not be able to
258show you the random seed which generated it, since it wasn't
259generated \e{from} a random seed. If you \e{enter} a random seed,
260however, the program will be able to show you the descriptive game
261ID derived from that random seed.
262
263Note that the game parameter strings are not always identical
264between the two forms. For some games, there will be parameter data
265provided with the random seed which is not included in the
266descriptive game ID. This is because that parameter information is
267only relevant when \e{generating} puzzle grids, and is not important
268when playing them. Thus, for example, the difficulty level in Solo
269(\k{solo}) is not mentioned in the descriptive game ID.
270
271These additional parameters are also not set permanently if you type
272in a game ID. For example, suppose you have Solo set to \q{Advanced}
273difficulty level, and then a friend wants your help with a
274\q{Trivial} puzzle; so the friend reads out a random seed specifying
275\q{Trivial} difficulty, and you type it in. The program will
276generate you the same \q{Trivial} grid which your friend was having
277trouble with, but once you have finished playing it, when you ask
278for a new game it will automatically go back to the \q{Advanced}
279difficulty which it was previously set on.
280
281\H{common-type} The \q{Type} menu
282
283The \I{Type menu}\q{Type} menu, if present, may contain a list of
284\i{preset} game settings. Selecting one of these will start a new
285random game with the parameters specified.
286
287The \q{Type} menu may also contain a \q{\i{Custom}} option which
288allows you to fine-tune game \i{parameters}. The parameters
289available are specific to each game and are described in the
290following sections.
291
292\H{common-cmdline} Specifying game parameters on the \i{command line}
293
294(This section does not apply to the \i{Mac OS X} version.)
295
296The games in this collection deliberately do not ever save
297information on to the computer they run on: they have no high score
298tables and no saved preferences. (This is because I expect at least
299some people to play them at work, and those people will probably
300appreciate leaving as little evidence as possible!)
301
302However, if you do want to arrange for one of these games to
303\I{default parameters, specifying}default to a particular set of
304parameters, you can specify them on the command line.
305
306The easiest way to do this is to set up the parameters you want
307using the \q{Type} menu (see \k{common-type}), and then to select
308\q{Random Seed} from the \q{Game} or \q{File} menu (see
309\k{common-id}). The text in the \q{Game ID} box will be composed of
310two parts, separated by a hash. The first of these parts represents
311the game parameters (the size of the playing area, for example, and
312anything else you set using the \q{Type} menu).
313
314If you run the game with just that parameter text on the command
315line, it will start up with the settings you specified.
316
317For example: if you run Cube (see \k{cube}), select \q{Octahedron}
318from the \q{Type} menu, and then go to the game ID selection, you
319will see a string of the form \cq{o2x2#338686542711620}. Take only
320the part before the hash (\cq{o2x2}), and start Cube with that text
321on the command line: \cq{PREFIX-cube o2x2}.
322
323If you copy the \e{entire} game ID on to the command line, the game
324will start up in the specific game that was described. This is
325occasionally a more convenient way to start a particular game ID
326than by pasting it into the game ID selection box.
327
328(You could also retrieve the encoded game parameters using the
329\q{Specific} menu option instead of \q{Random Seed}, but if you do
330then some options, such as the difficulty level in Solo, will be
331missing. See \k{common-id} for more details on this.)
332
333\H{common-unix-cmdline} \i{Unix} \i{command-line} options
334
335(This section only applies to the Unix port.)
336
337In addition to being able to specify game parameters on the command
338line (see \k{common-cmdline}), there are various other options:
339
340\dt \cw{--game}
341
342\dt \cw{--load}
343
344\dd These options respectively determine whether the command-line
345argument is treated as specifying game parameters or a \i{save} file
346to \i{load}. Only one should be specified. If neither of these options
347is specified, a guess is made based on the format of the argument.
348
349\dt \cw{--generate }\e{n}
350
351\dd If this option is specified, instead of a puzzle being displayed,
352a number of descriptive game IDs will be \I{generating game IDs}invented
353and printed on standard output. This is useful for gaining access to
354the game generation algorithms without necessarily using the frontend.
355
356\lcont{
357
358If game parameters are specified on the command-line, they will be
359used to generate the game IDs; otherwise a default set of parameters
360will be used.
361
362The most common use of this option is in conjunction with \c{--print},
363in which case its behaviour is slightly different; see below.
364
365}
366
367\dt \cw{--delete-prefs}
368
369\dd This option causes the puzzle to delete the configuration file in
370which its user preferences were stored, if there is one.
371
372\dt \I{printing, on Unix}\cw{--print }\e{w}\cw{x}\e{h}
373
374\dd If this option is specified, instead of a puzzle being displayed,
375a printed representation of one or more unsolved puzzles is sent to
376standard output, in \i{PostScript} format.
377
378\lcont{
379
380On each page of puzzles, there will be \e{w} across and \e{h} down. If
381there are more puzzles than \e{w}\by\e{h}, more than one page will be
382printed.
383
384If \c{--generate} has also been specified, the invented game IDs will
385be used to generate the printed output. Otherwise, a list of game IDs
386is expected on standard input (which can be descriptive or random
387seeds; see \k{common-id}), in the same format produced by
388\c{--generate}.
389
390For example:
391
392\c PREFIX-net --generate 12 --print 2x3 7x7w | lpr
393
394will generate two pages of printed Net puzzles (each of which will
395have a 7\by\.7 wrapping grid), and pipe the output to the \c{lpr}
396command, which on many systems will send them to an actual printer.
397
398There are various other options which affect printing; see below.
399
400}
401
402\dt \cw{--save }\e{file-prefix} [ \cw{--save-suffix }\e{file-suffix} ]
403
404\dd If this option is specified, instead of a puzzle being
405displayed, saved-game files for one or more unsolved puzzles are
406written to files constructed from the supplied prefix and/or suffix.
407
408\lcont{
409
410If \c{--generate} has also been specified, the invented game IDs will
411be used to generate the printed output. Otherwise, a list of game IDs
412is expected on standard input (which can be descriptive or random
413seeds; see \k{common-id}), in the same format produced by
414\c{--generate}.
415
416For example:
417
418\c PREFIX-net --generate 12 --save game --save-suffix .sav
419
420will generate twelve Net saved-game files with the names
421\cw{game0.sav} to \cw{game11.sav}.
422
423}
424
425\dt \cw{--version}
426
427\dd Prints version information about the game, and then quits.
428
429The following options are only meaningful if \c{--print} is also
430specified:
431
432\dt \cw{--with-solutions}
433
434\dd The set of pages filled with unsolved puzzles will be followed by
435the solutions to those puzzles.
436
437\dt \cw{--scale }\e{n}
438
439\dd Adjusts how big each puzzle is when printed. Larger numbers make
440puzzles bigger; the default is 1.0.
441
442\dt \cw{--colour}
443
444\dd Puzzles will be printed in colour, rather than in black and white
445(if supported by the puzzle).
446
447
448\C{net} \i{Net}
449
450\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.net}
451
452(\e{Note:} the \i{Windows} version of this game is called
453\i\cw{NETGAME.EXE} to avoid clashing with Windows's own \cw{NET.EXE}.)
454
455I originally saw this in the form of a Flash game called \i{FreeNet}
456\k{FreeNet}, written by Pavils Jurjans; there are several other
457implementations under the name \i{NetWalk}. The computer prepares a
458network by connecting up the centres of squares in a grid, and then
459shuffles the network by rotating every tile randomly. Your job is to
460rotate it all back into place. The successful solution will be an
461entirely connected network, with no closed loops. \#{The latter
462clause means that there are no closed paths within the network.
463Could this be clearer? "No closed paths"?} As a visual aid,
464all tiles which are connected to the one in the middle are
465highlighted.
466
467\B{FreeNet} \W{http://www.jurjans.lv/stuff/net/FreeNet.htm}\cw{http://www.jurjans.lv/stuff/net/FreeNet.htm}
468
469\H{net-controls} \i{Net controls}
470
471\IM{Net controls} controls, for Net
472\IM{Net controls} keys, for Net
473\IM{Net controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Net
474
475This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse. The
476controls are:
477
478\dt \e{Select tile}: mouse pointer, arrow keys
479
480\dt \e{Rotate tile anticlockwise}: left mouse button, \q{A} key
481
482\dt \e{Rotate tile clockwise}: right mouse button, \q{D} key
483
484\dt \e{Rotate tile by 180 degrees}: \q{F} key
485
486\dt \e{Lock (or unlock) tile}: middle mouse button, shift-click, \q{S} key
487
488\dd You can lock a tile once you're sure of its orientation. You can
489also unlock it again, but while it's locked you can't accidentally
490turn it.
491
492The following controls are not necessary to complete the game, but may
493be useful:
494
495\dt \e{Shift grid}: Shift + arrow keys
496
497\dd On grids that wrap, you can move the origin of the grid, so that
498tiles that were on opposite sides of the grid can be seen together.
499
500\dt \e{Move centre}: Ctrl + arrow keys
501
502\dd You can change which tile is used as the source of highlighting.
503(It doesn't ultimately matter which tile this is, as every tile will
504be connected to every other tile in a correct solution, but it may be
505helpful in the intermediate stages of solving the puzzle.)
506
507\dt \e{Jumble tiles}: \q{J} key
508
509\dd This key turns all tiles that are not locked to random
510orientations.
511
512(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
513
514\H{net-params} \I{parameters, for Net}Net parameters
515
516These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
517\q{Type} menu.
518
519\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
520
521\dd Size of grid in tiles.
522
523\dt \e{Walls wrap around}
524
525\dd If checked, flow can pass from the left edge to the right edge,
526and from top to bottom, and vice versa.
527
528\dt \e{Barrier probability}
529
530\dd A number between 0.0 and 1.0 controlling whether an immovable
531barrier is placed between two tiles to prevent flow between them (a
532higher number gives more barriers). Since barriers are immovable, they
533act as constraints on the solution (i.e., hints).
534
535\lcont{
536
537The grid generation in Net has been carefully arranged so that the
538barriers are independent of the rest of the grid. This means that if
539you note down the random seed used to generate the current puzzle
540(see \k{common-id}), change the \e{Barrier probability} parameter,
541and then re-enter the same random seed, you should see exactly the
542same starting grid, with the only change being the number of
543barriers. So if you're stuck on a particular grid and need a hint,
544you could start up another instance of Net, set up the same
545parameters but a higher barrier probability, and enter the game seed
546from the original Net window.
547
548}
549
550\dt \e{Ensure unique solution}
551
552\dd Normally, Net will make sure that the puzzles it presents have
553only one solution. Puzzles with ambiguous sections can be more
554difficult and more subtle, so if you like you can turn off this
555feature and risk having ambiguous puzzles. (Also, finding \e{all}
556the possible solutions can be an additional challenge for an
557advanced player.)
558
559\H{net-prefs} \I{preferences, for Net}Net user preferences
560
561On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
562on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure when loops are highlighted
563as errors. By default, they're always highlighted; by changing this
564option, you can ask for a loop to be highlighted only if every tile
565forming part of the loop is locked. This avoids the loop highlighting
566acting as a spoiler for available deductions about squares you haven't
567even looked at yet.
568
569
570\C{cube} \i{Cube}
571
572\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.cube}
573
574This is another one I originally saw as a web game. This one was a
575Java game \k{cube-java-game}, by Paul Scott. You have a grid of 16
576squares, six of which are blue; on one square rests a cube. Your move
577is to use the arrow keys to roll the cube through 90 degrees so that
578it moves to an adjacent square. If you roll the cube on to a blue
579square, the blue square is picked up on one face of the cube; if you
580roll a blue face of the cube on to a non-blue square, the blueness is
581put down again. (In general, whenever you roll the cube, the two faces
582that come into contact swap colours.) Your job is to get all six blue
583squares on to the six faces of the cube at the same time. Count your
584moves and try to do it in as few as possible.
585
586Unlike the original Java game, my version has an additional feature:
587once you've mastered the game with a cube rolling on a square grid,
588you can change to a triangular grid and roll any of a tetrahedron, an
589octahedron or an icosahedron.
590
591\B{cube-java-game} \W{http://www3.sympatico.ca/paulscott/cube/cube.htm}\cw{http://www3.sympatico.ca/paulscott/cube/cube.htm}
592
593\H{cube-controls} \i{Cube controls}
594
595\IM{Cube controls} controls, for Cube
596\IM{Cube controls} keys, for Cube
597\IM{Cube controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Cube
598
599This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse.
600
601Left-clicking anywhere on the window will move the cube (or other
602solid) towards the mouse pointer.
603
604The arrow keys can also used to roll the cube on its square grid in
605the four cardinal directions.
606On the triangular grids, the mapping of arrow keys to directions is
607more approximate. Vertical movement is disallowed where it doesn't
608make sense. The four keys surrounding the arrow keys on the numeric
609keypad (\q{7}, \q{9}, \q{1}, \q{3}) can be used for diagonal movement.
610
611(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
612
613\H{cube-params} \I{parameters, for Cube}Cube parameters
614
615These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
616\q{Type} menu.
617
618\dt \e{Type of solid}
619
620\dd Selects the solid to roll (and hence the shape of the grid):
621tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, or icosahedron.
622
623\dt \e{Width / top}, \e{Height / bottom}
624
625\dd On a square grid, horizontal and vertical dimensions. On a
626triangular grid, the number of triangles on the top and bottom rows
627respectively.
628
629
630\C{fifteen} \i{Fifteen}
631
632\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.fifteen}
633
634The old ones are the best: this is the good old \q{\i{15-puzzle}}
635with sliding tiles, which dates from the 1870s.
636You have a 4\by\.4 square grid; 15 squares
637contain numbered tiles, and the sixteenth is empty. Your move is to
638choose a tile next to the empty space, and slide it into the space.
639The aim is to end up with the tiles in numerical order, with the
640space in the bottom right (so that the top row reads 1,2,3,4 and the
641bottom row reads 13,14,15,\e{space}).
642
643\H{fifteen-controls} \i{Fifteen controls}
644
645\IM{Fifteen controls} controls, for Fifteen
646\IM{Fifteen controls} keys, for Fifteen
647\IM{Fifteen controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Fifteen
648
649This game can be controlled with the mouse or the keyboard.
650
651A left-click with the mouse in the row or column containing the empty
652space will move as many tiles as necessary to move the space to the
653mouse pointer.
654
655By default, the arrow keys will move a tile adjacent to the space in
656the direction indicated (moving the space in the \e{opposite}
657direction).
658
659Pressing \q{h} will make a suggested move. Pressing \q{h} enough
660times will solve the game, but it may scramble your progress while
661doing so.
662
663(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
664
665\H{fifteen-params} \I{parameters, for Fifteen}Fifteen parameters
666
667The only options available from the \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type}
668menu are \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are self-explanatory. (Once
669you've changed these, it's not a \q{15-puzzle} any more, of course!)
670
671\H{fifteen-prefs} \I{preferences, for Fifteen}Fifteen user preferences
672
673On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
674on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the sense of the arrow
675keys. With the default setting, \q{Move the tile}, the arrow key you
676press indicates the direction that you want a tile to move, so that
677(for example) if you want to move the tile left of the gap rightwards
678into the gap, you'd press Right. With the opposite setting, \q{Move
679the gap}, the behaviour of the arrow keys is reversed, and you would
680press Left to move the tile left of the gap into the gap, so that the
681\e{gap} ends up one square left of where it was.
682
683
684\C{sixteen} \i{Sixteen}
685
686\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.sixteen}
687
688Another sliding tile puzzle, visually similar to Fifteen (see
689\k{fifteen}) but with a different type of move. This time, there is no
690hole: all 16 squares on the grid contain numbered squares. Your move
691is to shift an entire row left or right, or shift an entire column up
692or down; every time you do that, the tile you shift off the grid
693re-appears at the other end of the same row, in the space you just
694vacated. To win, arrange the tiles into numerical order (1,2,3,4 on
695the top row, 13,14,15,16 on the bottom). When you've done that, try
696playing on different sizes of grid.
697
698I \e{might} have invented this game myself, though only by accident if
699so (and I'm sure other people have independently invented it). I
700thought I was imitating a screensaver I'd seen, but I have a feeling
701that the screensaver might actually have been a Fifteen-type puzzle
702rather than this slightly different kind. So this might be the one
703thing in my puzzle collection which represents creativity on my part
704rather than just engineering.
705
706\H{sixteen-controls} \I{controls, for Sixteen}Sixteen controls
707
708Left-clicking on an arrow will move the appropriate row or column in
709the direction indicated. Right-clicking will move it in the opposite
710direction.
711
712Alternatively, use the cursor keys to move the position indicator
713around the edge of the grid, and use the return key to move the
714row/column in the direction indicated.
715
716You can also move the tiles directly. Move the cursor onto a tile,
717hold Control and press an arrow key to move the tile under the
718cursor and move the cursor along with the tile. Or, hold Shift to
719move only the tile. Pressing Enter simulates holding down Control
720(press Enter again to release), while pressing Space simulates
721holding down shift.
722
723(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
724
725\H{sixteen-params} \I{parameters, for Sixteen}Sixteen parameters
726
727The parameters available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
728\q{Type} menu are:
729
730\b \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are self-explanatory.
731
732\b You can ask for a limited shuffling operation to be performed on
733the grid. By default, Sixteen will shuffle the grid in such a way
734that any arrangement is about as probable as any other. You can
735override this by requesting a precise number of shuffling moves to
736be performed. Typically your aim is then to determine the precise
737set of shuffling moves and invert them exactly, so that you answer
738(say) a four-move shuffle with a four-move solution. Note that the
739more moves you ask for, the more likely it is that solutions shorter
740than the target length will turn out to be possible.
741
742
743\C{twiddle} \i{Twiddle}
744
745\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.twiddle}
746
747Twiddle is a tile-rearrangement puzzle, visually similar to Sixteen
748(see \k{sixteen}): you are given a grid of square tiles, each
749containing a number, and your aim is to arrange the numbers into
750ascending order.
751
752In basic Twiddle, your move is to rotate a square group of four
753tiles about their common centre. (Orientation is not significant in
754the basic puzzle, although you can select it.) On more advanced
755settings, you can rotate a larger square group of tiles.
756
757I first saw this type of puzzle in the GameCube game \q{Metroid
758Prime 2}. In the Main Gyro Chamber in that game, there is a puzzle
759you solve to unlock a door, which is a special case of Twiddle. I
760developed this game as a generalisation of that puzzle.
761
762\H{twiddle-controls} \I{controls, for Twiddle}Twiddle controls
763
764To play Twiddle, click the mouse in the centre of the square group
765you wish to rotate. In the basic mode, you rotate a 2\by\.2 square,
766which means you have to click at a corner point where four tiles
767meet.
768
769In more advanced modes you might be rotating 3\by\.3 or even more at
770a time; if the size of the square is odd then you simply click in
771the centre tile of the square you want to rotate.
772
773Clicking with the left mouse button rotates the group anticlockwise.
774Clicking with the right button rotates it clockwise.
775
776You can also move an outline square around the grid with the cursor
777keys; the square is the size above (2\by\.2 by default, or larger).
778Pressing the return key or space bar will rotate the current square
779anticlockwise or clockwise respectively.
780
781(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
782
783\H{twiddle-parameters} \I{parameters, for Twiddle}Twiddle parameters
784
785Twiddle provides several configuration options via the \q{Custom}
786option on the \q{Type} menu:
787
788\b You can configure the width and height of the puzzle grid.
789
790\b You can configure the size of square block that rotates at a time.
791
792\b You can ask for every square in the grid to be distinguishable
793(the default), or you can ask for a simplified puzzle in which there
794are groups of identical numbers. In the simplified puzzle your aim
795is just to arrange all the 1s into the first row, all the 2s into
796the second row, and so on.
797
798\b You can configure whether the orientation of tiles matters. If
799you ask for an orientable puzzle, each tile will have a triangle
800drawn in it. All the triangles must be pointing upwards to complete
801the puzzle.
802
803\b You can ask for a limited shuffling operation to be performed on
804the grid. By default, Twiddle will shuffle the grid so much that any
805arrangement is about as probable as any other. You can override this
806by requesting a precise number of shuffling moves to be performed.
807Typically your aim is then to determine the precise set of shuffling
808moves and invert them exactly, so that you answer (say) a four-move
809shuffle with a four-move solution. Note that the more moves you ask
810for, the more likely it is that solutions shorter than the target
811length will turn out to be possible.
812
813
814\C{rect} \i{Rectangles}
815
816\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.rectangles}
817
818You have a grid of squares, with numbers written in some (but not all)
819of the squares. Your task is to subdivide the grid into rectangles of
820various sizes, such that (a) every rectangle contains exactly one
821numbered square, and (b) the area of each rectangle is equal to the
822number written in its numbered square.
823
824Credit for this game goes to the Japanese puzzle magazine \i{Nikoli}
825\k{nikoli-rect}; I've also seen a Palm implementation at \i{Puzzle
826Palace} \k{puzzle-palace-rect}. Unlike Puzzle Palace's
827implementation, my version automatically generates random grids of
828any size you like. The quality of puzzle design is therefore not
829quite as good as hand-crafted puzzles would be, but on the plus side
830you get an inexhaustible supply of puzzles tailored to your own
831specification.
832
833\B{nikoli-rect} \W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/shikaku/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/shikaku/}
834
835\B{puzzle-palace-rect} \W{https://web.archive.org/web/20041024001459/http://www.puzzle.gr.jp/puzzle/sikaku/palm/index.html.en}\cw{https://web.archive.org/web/20041024001459/http://www.puzzle.gr.jp/puzzle/sikaku/palm/index.html.en}
836
837\H{rectangles-controls} \I{controls, for Rectangles}Rectangles controls
838
839This game is played with the mouse or cursor keys.
840
841Left-click any edge to toggle it on or off, or left-click and drag to draw
842an entire rectangle (or line) on the grid in one go (removing any existing
843edges within that rectangle). Right-clicking and dragging will allow you
844to erase the contents of a rectangle without affecting its edges.
845
846Alternatively, use the cursor keys to move the position indicator
847around the board. Pressing the return key then allows you to use the
848cursor keys to drag a rectangle out from that position, and pressing
849the return key again completes the rectangle. Using the space bar
850instead of the return key allows you to erase the contents of a
851rectangle without affecting its edges, as above. Pressing escape
852cancels a drag.
853
854When a rectangle of the correct size is completed, it will be shaded.
855
856(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
857
858\H{rectangles-params} \I{parameters, for Rectangles}Rectangles parameters
859
860These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
861\q{Type} menu.
862
863\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
864
865\dd Size of grid, in squares.
866
867\dt \e{Expansion factor}
868
869\dd This is a mechanism for changing the type of grids generated by
870the program. Some people prefer a grid containing a few large
871rectangles to one containing many small ones. So you can ask
872Rectangles to essentially generate a \e{smaller} grid than the size
873you specified, and then to expand it by adding rows and columns.
874
875\lcont{
876
877The default expansion factor of zero means that Rectangles will
878simply generate a grid of the size you ask for, and do nothing
879further. If you set an expansion factor of (say) 0.5, it means that
880each dimension of the grid will be expanded to half again as big
881after generation. In other words, the initial grid will be 2/3 the
882size in each dimension, and will be expanded to its full size
883without adding any more rectangles.
884
885Setting an expansion factor of around 0.5 tends to make the game
886more difficult, and also (in my experience) rewards a less deductive
887and more intuitive playing style. If you set it \e{too} high,
888though, the game simply cannot generate more than a few rectangles
889to cover the entire grid, and the game becomes trivial.
890
891}
892
893\dt \e{Ensure unique solution}
894
895\dd Normally, Rectangles will make sure that the puzzles it presents
896have only one solution. Puzzles with ambiguous sections can be more
897difficult and more subtle, so if you like you can turn off this
898feature and risk having ambiguous puzzles. Also, finding \e{all} the
899possible solutions can be an additional challenge for an advanced
900player. Turning off this option can also speed up puzzle generation.
901
902
903\C{netslide} \i{Netslide}
904
905\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.netslide}
906
907This game combines the grid generation of Net (see \k{net}) with the
908movement of Sixteen (see \k{sixteen}): you have a Net grid, but
909instead of rotating tiles back into place you have to slide them
910into place by moving a whole row at a time.
911
912As in Sixteen, \I{controls, for Netslide}control is with the mouse or
913cursor keys. See \k{sixteen-controls}.
914
915\I{parameters, for Netslide}The available game parameters have similar
916meanings to those in Net (see \k{net-params}) and Sixteen (see
917\k{sixteen-params}).
918
919Netslide was contributed to this collection by Richard Boulton.
920
921
922\C{pattern} \i{Pattern}
923
924\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.pattern}
925
926You have a grid of squares, which must all be filled in either black
927or white. Beside each row of the grid are listed, in order, the
928lengths of the runs of black squares on that row; above each column
929are listed, in order, the lengths of the runs of black squares in that
930column. Your aim is to fill in the entire grid black or white.
931
932I first saw this puzzle form around 1995, under the name
933\q{\i{nonograms}}. I've seen it in various places since then, under
934different names.
935
936Normally, puzzles of this type turn out to be a meaningful picture
937of something once you've solved them. However, since this version
938generates the puzzles automatically, they will just look like random
939groupings of squares. (One user has suggested that this is actually
940a \e{good} thing, since it prevents you from guessing the colour of
941squares based on the picture, and forces you to use logic instead.)
942The advantage, though, is that you never run out of them.
943
944\H{pattern-controls} \I{controls, for Pattern}Pattern controls
945
946This game is played with the mouse.
947
948Left-click in a square to colour it black. Right-click to colour it
949white. If you make a mistake, you can middle-click, or hold down
950Shift while clicking with any button, to colour the square in the
951default grey (meaning \q{undecided}) again.
952
953You can click and drag with the left or right mouse button to colour
954a vertical or horizontal line of squares black or white at a time
955(respectively). If you click and drag with the middle button, or
956with Shift held down, you can colour a whole rectangle of squares
957grey.
958
959You can also move around the grid with the cursor keys. Pressing the
960return key will cycle the current cell through empty, then black, then
961white, then empty, and the space bar does the same cycle in reverse.
962
963Moving the cursor while holding Control will colour the moved-over
964squares black. Holding Shift will colour the moved-over squares
965white, and holding both will colour them grey.
966
967(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
968
969\H{pattern-parameters} \I{parameters, for Pattern}Pattern parameters
970
971The only options available from the \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type}
972menu are \e{Width} and \e{Height}, which are self-explanatory.
973
974
975\C{solo} \i{Solo}
976
977\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.solo}
978
979You have a square grid, which is divided into as many equally sized
980sub-blocks as the grid has rows. Each square must be filled in with
981a digit from 1 to the size of the grid, in such a way that
982
983\b every row contains only one occurrence of each digit
984
985\b every column contains only one occurrence of each digit
986
987\b every block contains only one occurrence of each digit.
988
989\b (optionally, by default off) each of the square's two main
990diagonals contains only one occurrence of each digit.
991
992You are given some of the numbers as clues; your aim is to place the
993rest of the numbers correctly.
994
995Under the default settings, the sub-blocks are square or
996rectangular. The default puzzle size is 3\by\.3 (a 9\by\.9 actual
997grid, divided into nine 3\by\.3 blocks). You can also select sizes
998with rectangular blocks instead of square ones, such as 2\by\.3 (a
9996\by\.6 grid divided into six 3\by\.2 blocks). Alternatively, you
1000can select \q{jigsaw} mode, in which the sub-blocks are arbitrary
1001shapes which differ between individual puzzles.
1002
1003Another available mode is \q{killer}. In this mode, clues are not
1004given in the form of filled-in squares; instead, the grid is divided
1005into \q{cages} by coloured lines, and for each cage the game tells
1006you what the sum of all the digits in that cage should be. Also, no
1007digit may appear more than once within a cage, even if the cage
1008crosses the boundaries of existing regions.
1009
1010If you select a puzzle size which requires more than 9 digits, the
1011additional digits will be letters of the alphabet. For example, if
1012you select 3\by\.4 then the digits which go in your grid will be 1
1013to 9, plus \cq{a}, \cq{b} and \cq{c}. This cannot be selected for
1014killer puzzles.
1015
1016I first saw this puzzle in \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-solo}, although it's
1017also been popularised by various newspapers under the name
1018\q{Sudoku} or \q{Su Doku}. Howard Garns is considered the inventor
1019of the modern form of the puzzle, and it was first published in
1020\e{Dell Pencil Puzzles and Word Games}. A more elaborate treatment
1021of the history of the puzzle can be found on Wikipedia
1022\k{wikipedia-solo}.
1023
1024\B{nikoli-solo} \W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/sudoku/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/sudoku/}
1025
1026\B{wikipedia-solo} \W{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudoku}\cw{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudoku}
1027
1028\H{solo-controls} \I{controls, for Solo}Solo controls
1029
1030To play Solo, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
1031type a digit or letter on the keyboard to fill that square. If you
1032make a mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and press
1033Space to clear it again (or use the Undo feature).
1034
1035If you \e{right}-click in a square and then type a number, that
1036number will be entered in the square as a \q{pencil mark}. You can
1037have pencil marks for multiple numbers in the same square. Squares
1038containing filled-in numbers cannot also contain pencil marks.
1039
1040The game pays no attention to pencil marks, so exactly what you use
1041them for is up to you: you can use them as reminders that a
1042particular square needs to be re-examined once you know more about a
1043particular number, or you can use them as lists of the possible
1044numbers in a given square, or anything else you feel like.
1045
1046To erase a single pencil mark, right-click in the square and type
1047the same number again.
1048
1049All pencil marks in a square are erased when you left-click and type
1050a number, or when you left-click and press space. Right-clicking and
1051pressing space will also erase pencil marks.
1052
1053Alternatively, use the cursor keys to move the mark around the grid.
1054Pressing the return key toggles the mark (from a normal mark to a
1055pencil mark), and typing a number in is entered in the square in the
1056appropriate way; typing in a 0 or using the space bar will clear a
1057filled square.
1058
1059(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1060
1061\H{solo-parameters} \I{parameters, for Solo}Solo parameters
1062
1063Solo allows you to configure two separate dimensions of the puzzle
1064grid on the \q{Type} menu: the number of columns, and the number of
1065rows, into which the main grid is divided. (The size of a block is
1066the inverse of this: for example, if you select 2 columns and 3 rows,
1067each actual block will have 3 columns and 2 rows.)
1068
1069If you tick the \q{X} checkbox, Solo will apply the optional extra
1070constraint that the two main diagonals of the grid also contain one
1071of every digit. (This is sometimes known as \q{Sudoku-X} in
1072newspapers.) In this mode, the squares on the two main diagonals
1073will be shaded slightly so that you know it's enabled.
1074
1075If you tick the \q{Jigsaw} checkbox, Solo will generate randomly
1076shaped sub-blocks. In this mode, the actual grid size will be taken
1077to be the product of the numbers entered in the \q{Columns} and
1078\q{Rows} boxes. There is no reason why you have to enter a number
1079greater than 1 in both boxes; Jigsaw mode has no constraint on the
1080grid size, and it can even be a prime number if you feel like it.
1081
1082If you tick the \q{Killer} checkbox, Solo will generate a set of
1083of cages, which are randomly shaped and drawn in an outline of a
1084different colour. Each of these regions contains a smaller clue
1085which shows the digit sum of all the squares in this region.
1086
1087You can also configure the type of symmetry shown in the generated
1088puzzles. More symmetry makes the puzzles look prettier but may also
1089make them easier, since the symmetry constraints can force more
1090clues than necessary to be present. Completely asymmetric puzzles
1091have the freedom to contain as few clues as possible.
1092
1093Finally, you can configure the difficulty of the generated puzzles.
1094Difficulty levels are judged by the complexity of the techniques of
1095deduction required to solve the puzzle: each level requires a mode
1096of reasoning which was not necessary in the previous one. In
1097particular, on difficulty levels \q{Trivial} and \q{Basic} there
1098will be a square you can fill in with a single number at all times,
1099whereas at \q{Intermediate} level and beyond you will have to make
1100partial deductions about the \e{set} of squares a number could be in
1101(or the set of numbers that could be in a square).
1102\#{Advanced, Extreme?}
1103At \q{Unreasonable} level, even this is not enough, and you will
1104eventually have to make a guess, and then backtrack if it turns out
1105to be wrong.
1106
1107Generating difficult puzzles is itself difficult: if you select one
1108of the higher difficulty levels, Solo may have to make many attempts
1109at generating a puzzle before it finds one hard enough for you. Be
1110prepared to wait, especially if you have also configured a large
1111puzzle size.
1112
1113
1114\C{mines} \i{Mines}
1115
1116\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.mines}
1117
1118You have a grid of covered squares, some of which contain mines, but
1119you don't know which. Your job is to uncover every square which does
1120\e{not} contain a mine. If you uncover a square containing a mine,
1121you lose. If you uncover a square which does not contain a mine, you
1122are told how many mines are contained within the eight surrounding
1123squares.
1124
1125This game needs no introduction; popularised by Windows, it is
1126perhaps the single best known desktop puzzle game in existence.
1127
1128This version of it has an unusual property. By default, it will
1129generate its mine positions in such a way as to ensure that you
1130never need to \e{guess} where a mine is: you will always be able to
1131deduce it somehow. So you will never, as can happen in other
1132versions, get to the last four squares and discover that there are
1133two mines left but you have no way of knowing for sure where they
1134are.
1135
1136\H{mines-controls} \I{controls, for Mines}Mines controls
1137
1138This game is played with the mouse.
1139
1140If you left-click in a covered square, it will be uncovered.
1141
1142If you right-click in a covered square, it will place a flag which
1143indicates that the square is believed to be a mine. Left-clicking in
1144a marked square will not uncover it, for safety. You can right-click
1145again to remove a mark placed in error.
1146
1147If you left-click in an \e{uncovered} square, it will \q{clear
1148around} the square. This means: if the square has exactly as many
1149flags surrounding it as it should have mines, then all the covered
1150squares next to it which are \e{not} flagged will be uncovered. So
1151once you think you know the location of all the mines around a
1152square, you can use this function as a shortcut to avoid having to
1153click on each of the remaining squares one by one.
1154
1155If you uncover a square which has \e{no} mines in the surrounding
1156eight squares, then it is obviously safe to uncover those squares in
1157turn, and so on if any of them also has no surrounding mines. This
1158will be done for you automatically; so sometimes when you uncover a
1159square, a whole new area will open up to be explored.
1160
1161You can also use the cursor keys to move around the minefield.
1162Pressing the return key in a covered square uncovers it, and in an
1163uncovered square will clear around it (so it acts as the left button),
1164pressing the space bar in a covered square will place a flag
1165(similarly, it acts as the right button).
1166
1167All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.
1168
1169Even Undo is available, although you might consider it cheating to
1170use it. If you step on a mine, the program will only reveal the mine
1171in question (unlike most other implementations, which reveal all of
1172them). You can then Undo your fatal move and continue playing if you
1173like. The program will track the number of times you died (and Undo
1174will not reduce that counter), so when you get to the end of the
1175game you know whether or not you did it without making any errors.
1176
1177(If you really want to know the full layout of the grid, which other
1178implementations will show you after you die, you can always use the
1179Solve menu option.)
1180
1181\H{mines-parameters} \I{parameters, for Mines}Mines parameters
1182
1183The options available from the \q{Custom...} option on the \q{Type}
1184menu are:
1185
1186\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1187
1188\dd Size of grid in squares.
1189
1190\dt \e{Mines}
1191
1192\dd Number of mines in the grid. You can enter this as an absolute
1193mine count, or alternatively you can put a \cw{%} sign on the end in
1194which case the game will arrange for that proportion of the squares
1195in the grid to be mines.
1196
1197\lcont{
1198
1199Beware of setting the mine count too high. At very high densities,
1200the program may spend forever searching for a solvable grid.
1201
1202}
1203
1204\dt \e{Ensure solubility}
1205
1206\dd When this option is enabled (as it is by default), Mines will
1207ensure that the entire grid can be fully deduced starting from the
1208initial open space. If you prefer the riskier grids generated by
1209other implementations, you can switch off this option.
1210
1211
1212\C{samegame} \i{Same Game}
1213
1214\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.samegame}
1215
1216You have a grid of coloured squares, which you have to clear by
1217highlighting contiguous regions of more than one coloured square;
1218the larger the region you highlight, the more points you get (and
1219the faster you clear the arena).
1220
1221If you clear the grid you win. If you end up with nothing but
1222single squares (i.e., there are no more clickable regions left) you
1223lose.
1224
1225Removing a region causes the rest of the grid to shuffle up:
1226blocks that are suspended will fall down (first), and then empty
1227columns are filled from the right.
1228
1229Same Game was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
1230
1231\H{samegame-controls} \i{Same Game controls}
1232
1233\IM{Same Game controls} controls, for Same Game
1234\IM{Same Game controls} keys, for Same Game
1235\IM{Same Game controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Same Game
1236
1237This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse.
1238
1239If you left-click an unselected region, it becomes selected (possibly
1240clearing the current selection).
1241
1242If you left-click the selected region, it will be removed (and the
1243rest of the grid shuffled immediately).
1244
1245If you right-click the selected region, it will be unselected.
1246
1247The cursor keys move a cursor around the grid. Pressing the Space or
1248Enter keys while the cursor is in an unselected region selects it;
1249pressing Space or Enter again removes it as above.
1250
1251(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1252
1253\H{samegame-parameters} \I{parameters, for Same Game}Same Game parameters
1254
1255These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1256\q{Type} menu.
1257
1258\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1259
1260\dd Size of grid in squares.
1261
1262\dt \e{No. of colours}
1263
1264\dd Number of different colours used to fill the grid; the more colours,
1265the fewer large regions of colour and thus the more difficult it is to
1266successfully clear the grid.
1267
1268\dt \e{Scoring system}
1269
1270\dd Controls the precise mechanism used for scoring. With the default
1271system, \q{(n-2)^2}, only regions of three squares or more will score
1272any points at all. With the alternative \q{(n-1)^2} system, regions of
1273two squares score a point each, and larger regions score relatively
1274more points.
1275
1276\dt \e{Ensure solubility}
1277
1278\dd If this option is ticked (the default state), generated grids
1279will be guaranteed to have at least one solution.
1280
1281\lcont{
1282
1283If you turn it off, the game generator will not try to guarantee
1284soluble grids; it will, however, still ensure that there are at
1285least 2 squares of each colour on the grid at the start (since a
1286grid with exactly one square of a given colour is \e{definitely}
1287insoluble). Grids generated with this option disabled may contain
1288more large areas of contiguous colour, leading to opportunities for
1289higher scores; they can also take less time to generate.
1290
1291}
1292
1293
1294\C{flip} \i{Flip}
1295
1296\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.flip}
1297
1298You have a grid of squares, some light and some dark. Your aim is to
1299light all the squares up at the same time. You can choose any square
1300and flip its state from light to dark or dark to light, but when you
1301do so, other squares around it change state as well.
1302
1303Each square contains a small diagram showing which other squares
1304change when you flip it.
1305
1306\H{flip-controls} \i{Flip controls}
1307
1308\IM{Flip controls} controls, for Flip
1309\IM{Flip controls} keys, for Flip
1310\IM{Flip controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Flip
1311
1312This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse.
1313
1314Left-click in a square to flip it and its associated squares, or
1315use the cursor keys to choose a square and the space bar or Enter
1316key to flip.
1317
1318If you use the \q{Solve} function on this game, it will mark some of
1319the squares in red. If you click once in every square with a red
1320mark, the game should be solved. (If you click in a square
1321\e{without} a red mark, a red mark will appear in it to indicate
1322that you will need to reverse that operation to reach the solution.)
1323
1324(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1325
1326\H{flip-parameters} \I{parameters, for flip}Flip parameters
1327
1328These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1329\q{Type} menu.
1330
1331\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1332
1333\dd Size of grid in squares.
1334
1335\dt \e{Shape type}
1336
1337\dd This control determines the shape of the region which is flipped
1338by clicking in any given square. The default setting, \q{Crosses},
1339causes every square to flip itself and its four immediate neighbours
1340(or three or two if it's at an edge or corner). The other setting,
1341\q{Random}, causes a random shape to be chosen for every square, so
1342the game is different every time.
1343
1344
1345\C{guess} \i{Guess}
1346
1347\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.guess}
1348
1349You have a set of coloured pegs, and have to reproduce a
1350predetermined sequence of them (chosen by the computer) within a
1351certain number of guesses.
1352
1353Each guess gets marked with the number of correctly-coloured pegs
1354in the correct places (in black), and also the number of
1355correctly-coloured pegs in the wrong places (in white).
1356
1357This game is also known (and marketed, by Hasbro, mainly) as
1358a board game \q{\i{Mastermind}}, with 6 colours, 4 pegs per row,
1359and 10 guesses. However, this version allows custom settings of number
1360of colours (up to 10), number of pegs per row, and number of guesses.
1361
1362Guess was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
1363
1364\H{guess-controls} \i{Guess controls}
1365
1366\IM{Guess controls} controls, for Guess
1367\IM{Guess controls} keys, for Guess
1368\IM{Guess controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Guess
1369
1370This game can be played with either the keyboard or the mouse.
1371
1372With the mouse, drag a coloured peg from the tray on the left-hand
1373side to its required position in the current guess; pegs may also be
1374dragged from current and past guesses to copy them elsewhere. To
1375remove a peg, drag it off its current position to somewhere invalid.
1376
1377Right-clicking in the current guess adds a \q{hold} marker; pegs
1378that have hold markers will be automatically added to the next guess
1379after marking.
1380
1381Alternatively, with the keyboard, the up and down cursor keys can be
1382used to select a peg colour, the left and right keys to select a
1383peg position, and the Enter key to place a peg of the
1384selected colour in the chosen position. \q{D} or Backspace removes a
1385peg, and Space adds a hold marker.
1386
1387The number keys can also be used to insert pegs: \q{1} inserts the
1388top-most colour, \q{2} the second one, and so forth. These also
1389move the peg cursor to the right. Pressing \q{L} will label the
1390pegs with their numbers.
1391
1392Pressing \q{h} or \q{?} will fill the current guess with a suggested
1393guess. Using this is not recommended for 10 or more pegs as it is
1394slow.
1395
1396When the guess is complete, the smaller feedback pegs will be highlighted;
1397clicking on these (or moving the peg cursor to them with the arrow keys
1398and pressing the space bar or Enter key) will mark the current guess,
1399copy any held pegs to the next guess, and move the \q{current guess}
1400marker.
1401
1402If you correctly position all the pegs the solution will be displayed
1403below; if you run out of guesses (or select \q{Solve...}) the solution
1404will also be revealed.
1405
1406(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1407
1408\H{guess-parameters} \I{parameters, for Guess}Guess parameters
1409
1410These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1411\q{Type} menu. The default game matches the parameters for the
1412board game \q{Mastermind}.
1413
1414\dt \e{Colours}
1415
1416\dd Number of colours the solution is chosen from; from 2 to 10
1417(more is harder).
1418
1419\dt \e{Pegs per guess}
1420
1421\dd Number of pegs per guess (more is harder).
1422
1423\dt \e{Guesses}
1424
1425\dd Number of guesses you have to find the solution in (fewer is harder).
1426
1427\dt \e{Allow blanks}
1428
1429\dd Allows blank pegs to be given as part of a guess (makes it easier, because
1430you know that those will never be counted as part of the solution). This
1431is turned off by default.
1432
1433\lcont{
1434
1435Note that this doesn't allow blank pegs in the solution; if you really wanted
1436that, use one extra colour.
1437
1438}
1439
1440\dt \e{Allow duplicates}
1441
1442\dd Allows the solution (and the guesses) to contain colours more than once;
1443this increases the search space (making things harder), and is turned on by
1444default.
1445
1446\H{guess-prefs} \I{preferences, for Guess}Guess user preferences
1447
1448On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
1449on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure whether pegs are labelled
1450with their numbers. Unlike the \q{L} key, this will persist between
1451games.
1452
1453
1454\C{pegs} \i{Pegs}
1455
1456\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.pegs}
1457
1458A number of pegs are placed in holes on a board. You can remove a
1459peg by jumping an adjacent peg over it (horizontally or vertically)
1460to a vacant hole on the other side. Your aim is to remove all but one
1461of the pegs initially present.
1462
1463This game, best known as \I{Solitaire, Peg}\q{Peg Solitaire}, is
1464possibly one of the oldest puzzle games still commonly known.
1465
1466\H{pegs-controls} \i{Pegs controls}
1467
1468\IM{Pegs controls} controls, for Pegs
1469
1470To move a peg, drag it with the mouse from its current position to
1471its final position. If the final position is exactly two holes away
1472from the initial position, is currently unoccupied by a peg, and
1473there is a peg in the intervening square, the move will be permitted
1474and the intervening peg will be removed.
1475
1476Vacant spaces which you can move a peg into are marked with holes. A
1477space with no peg and no hole is not available for moving at all: it
1478is an obstacle which you must work around.
1479
1480You can also use the cursor keys to move a position indicator around
1481the board. Pressing the return key while over a peg, followed by a
1482cursor key, will jump the peg in that direction (if that is a legal
1483move).
1484
1485(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1486
1487\H{pegs-parameters} \I{parameters, for Pegs}Pegs parameters
1488
1489These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1490\q{Type} menu.
1491
1492\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1493
1494\dd Size of grid in holes.
1495
1496\dt \e{Board type}
1497
1498\dd Controls whether you are given a board of a standard shape or a
1499randomly generated shape. The two standard shapes currently
1500supported are \q{Cross} (in various sizes) and \q{Octagon}.
1501The 7\by\.7 Cross is the traditional English board layout.
1502The Octagon is the traditional French one.
1503Selecting \q{Random} will give you a different board shape every
1504time (but always one that is known to have a solution).
1505
1506
1507\C{dominosa} \i{Dominosa}
1508
1509\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.dominosa}
1510
1511A normal set of dominoes \dash that is, one instance of every
1512(unordered) pair of numbers from 0 to 6 \dash has been arranged
1513irregularly into a rectangle; then the number in each square has
1514been written down and the dominoes themselves removed. Your task is
1515to reconstruct the pattern by arranging the set of dominoes to match
1516the provided array of numbers.
1517
1518This puzzle is widely credited to O. S. Adler, and takes part of its
1519name from those initials.
1520
1521\H{dominosa-controls} \i{Dominosa controls}
1522
1523\IM{Dominosa controls} controls, for Dominosa
1524
1525Left-clicking between any two adjacent numbers places a domino
1526covering them, or removes one if it is already present. Trying to
1527place a domino which overlaps existing dominoes will remove the ones
1528it overlaps.
1529
1530Right-clicking between two adjacent numbers draws a line between
1531them, which you can use to remind yourself that you know those two
1532numbers are \e{not} covered by a single domino. Right-clicking again
1533removes the line.
1534
1535You can also use the cursor keys to move a cursor around the grid.
1536When the cursor is half way between two adjacent numbers, pressing
1537the return key will place a domino covering those numbers, or
1538pressing the space bar will lay a line between the two squares.
1539Repeating either action removes the domino or line.
1540
1541Pressing a number key will highlight all occurrences of that
1542number. Pressing that number again will clear the highlighting. Up to two
1543different numbers can be highlighted at any given time.
1544
1545(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1546
1547\H{dominosa-parameters} \I{parameters, for Dominosa}Dominosa parameters
1548
1549These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1550\q{Type} menu.
1551
1552\dt \e{Maximum number on dominoes}
1553
1554\dd Controls the size of the puzzle, by controlling the size of the
1555set of dominoes used to make it. Dominoes with numbers going up to N
1556will give rise to an (N+2) \by (N+1) rectangle; so, in particular,
1557the default value of 6 gives an 8\by\.7 grid.
1558
1559\dt \e{Ensure unique solution}
1560
1561\dd Normally, Dominosa will make sure that the puzzles it presents
1562have only one solution. Puzzles with ambiguous sections can be more
1563difficult and sometimes more subtle, so if you like you can turn off
1564this feature. Also, finding \e{all} the possible solutions can be an
1565additional challenge for an advanced player. Turning off this option
1566can also speed up puzzle generation.
1567
1568
1569\C{untangle} \i{Untangle}
1570
1571\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.untangle}
1572
1573You are given a number of points, some of which have lines drawn
1574between them. You can move the points about arbitrarily; your aim is
1575to position the points so that no line crosses another.
1576
1577I originally saw this in the form of a Flash game called \i{Planarity}
1578\k{Planarity}, written by John Tantalo.
1579
1580\B{Planarity} \W{http://planarity.net}\cw{http://planarity.net}
1581
1582\H{untangle-controls} \i{Untangle controls}
1583
1584\IM{Untangle controls} controls, for Untangle
1585
1586To move a point, click on it with the left mouse button and drag it
1587into a new position.
1588
1589The cursor keys may also be used to navigate amongst the
1590points. Pressing the Enter key will toggle dragging the
1591currently-highlighted point. Pressing Tab or Space will cycle through
1592all the points.
1593
1594(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1595
1596\H{untangle-parameters} \I{parameters, for Untangle}Untangle parameters
1597
1598There is only one parameter available from the \q{Custom...} option
1599on the \q{Type} menu:
1600
1601\dt \e{Number of points}
1602
1603\dd Controls the size of the puzzle, by specifying the number of
1604points in the generated graph.
1605
1606
1607\C{blackbox} \i{Black Box}
1608
1609\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.blackbox}
1610
1611A number of balls are hidden in a rectangular arena. You have to
1612deduce the positions of the balls by firing lasers positioned at
1613the edges of the arena and observing how their beams are deflected.
1614
1615Beams will travel straight from their origin until they hit the
1616opposite side of the arena (at which point they emerge), unless
1617affected by balls in one of the following ways:
1618
1619\b A beam that hits a ball head-on is absorbed and will never
1620 re-emerge. This includes beams that meet a ball on the first rank
1621 of the arena.
1622
1623\b A beam with a ball in its front-left square and no ball ahead of it
1624 gets deflected 90 degrees to the right.
1625
1626\b A beam with a ball in its front-right square and no ball ahead of
1627 it gets similarly deflected to the left.
1628
1629\b A beam that would re-emerge from its entry location is considered to be
1630 \q{reflected}.
1631
1632\b A beam which would get deflected before entering the arena by a
1633 ball to the front-left or front-right of its entry point is also
1634 considered to be \q{reflected}.
1635
1636Beams that are reflected appear as a \q{R}; beams that hit balls
1637head-on appear as \q{H}. Otherwise, a number appears at the firing
1638point and the location where the beam emerges (this number is unique
1639to that shot).
1640
1641You can place guesses as to the location of the balls, based on the
1642entry and exit patterns of the beams; once you have placed enough
1643balls a button appears enabling you to have your guesses checked.
1644
1645Here is a diagram showing how the positions of balls can create each
1646of the beam behaviours shown above:
1647
1648\c 1RHR----
1649\c |..O.O...|
1650\c 2........3
1651\c |........|
1652\c |........|
1653\c 3........|
1654\c |......O.|
1655\c H........|
1656\c |.....O..|
1657\c 12-RR---
1658
1659As shown, it is possible for a beam to receive multiple reflections
1660before re-emerging (see turn 3). Similarly, a beam may be reflected
1661(possibly more than once) before receiving a hit (the \q{H} on the
1662left side of the example).
1663
1664Note that any layout with more than 4 balls may have a non-unique
1665solution. The following diagram illustrates this; if you know the
1666board contains 5 balls, it is impossible to determine where the fifth
1667ball is (possible positions marked with an \cw{x}):
1668
1669\c --------
1670\c |........|
1671\c |........|
1672\c |..O..O..|
1673\c |...xx...|
1674\c |...xx...|
1675\c |..O..O..|
1676\c |........|
1677\c |........|
1678\c --------
1679
1680For this reason, when you have your guesses checked, the game will
1681check that your solution \e{produces the same results} as the
1682computer's, rather than that your solution is identical to the
1683computer's. So in the above example, you could put the fifth ball at
1684\e{any} of the locations marked with an \cw{x}, and you would still
1685win.
1686
1687Acornsoft published versions of Black Box for the Acorn Atom and the
1688BBC Microcomputer in the early 1980s. The puzzle was contributed to
1689this collection by James Harvey.
1690
1691\H{blackbox-controls} \i{Black Box controls}
1692
1693\IM{Black Box controls} controls, for Black Box
1694\IM{Black Box controls} keys, for Black Box
1695\IM{Black Box controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Black Box
1696
1697To fire a laser beam, left-click in a square around the edge of the
1698arena. The results will be displayed immediately. Clicking or holding
1699the left button on one of these squares will highlight the current go
1700(or a previous go) to confirm the exit point for that laser, if
1701applicable.
1702
1703To guess the location of a ball, left-click within the arena and a
1704black circle will appear marking the guess; click again to remove the
1705guessed ball.
1706
1707Locations in the arena may be locked against modification by
1708right-clicking; whole rows and columns may be similarly locked by
1709right-clicking in the laser square above/below that column, or to the
1710left/right of that row.
1711
1712The cursor keys may also be used to move around the grid. Pressing the
1713Enter key will fire a laser or add a new ball-location guess, and
1714pressing Space will lock a cell, row, or column.
1715
1716When an appropriate number of balls have been guessed, a button will
1717appear at the top-left corner of the grid; clicking that (with mouse
1718or cursor) will check your guesses.
1719
1720If you click the \q{check} button and your guesses are not correct,
1721the game will show you the minimum information necessary to
1722demonstrate this to you, so you can try again. If your ball
1723positions are not consistent with the beam paths you already know
1724about, one beam path will be circled to indicate that it proves you
1725wrong. If your positions match all the existing beam paths but are
1726still wrong, one new beam path will be revealed (written in red)
1727which is not consistent with your current guesses.
1728
1729If you decide to give up completely, you can select Solve to reveal
1730the actual ball positions. At this point, correctly-placed balls
1731will be displayed as filled black circles, incorrectly-placed balls
1732as filled black circles with red crosses, and missing balls as filled
1733red circles. In addition, a red circle marks any laser you had already
1734fired which is not consistent with your ball layout (just as when you
1735press the \q{check} button), and red text marks any laser you
1736\e{could} have fired in order to distinguish your ball layout from the
1737correct one.
1738
1739(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1740
1741\H{blackbox-parameters} \I{parameters, for Black Box}Black Box parameters
1742
1743These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1744\q{Type} menu.
1745
1746\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1747
1748\dd Size of grid in squares. There are 2 \by \e{Width} \by \e{Height} lasers
1749per grid, two per row and two per column.
1750
1751\dt \e{No. of balls}
1752
1753\dd Number of balls to place in the grid. This can be a single number,
1754or a range (separated with a hyphen, like \q{2-6}), and determines the
1755number of balls to place on the grid. The \q{reveal} button is only
1756enabled if you have guessed an appropriate number of balls; a guess
1757using a different number to the original solution is still acceptable,
1758if all the beam inputs and outputs match.
1759
1760
1761\C{slant} \i{Slant}
1762
1763\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.slant}
1764
1765You have a grid of squares. Your aim is to draw a diagonal line
1766through each square, and choose which way each line slants so that
1767the following conditions are met:
1768
1769\b The diagonal lines never form a loop.
1770
1771\b Any point with a circled number has precisely that many lines
1772meeting at it. (Thus, a 4 is the centre of a cross shape, whereas a
1773zero is the centre of a diamond shape \dash or rather, a partial
1774diamond shape, because a zero can never appear in the middle of the
1775grid because that would immediately cause a loop.)
1776
1777Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-slant}.
1778
1779\B{nikoli-slant}
1780\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/ja/puzzles/gokigen_naname/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/ja/puzzles/gokigen_naname/}
1781(in Japanese)
1782
1783\H{slant-controls} \i{Slant controls}
1784
1785\IM{Slant controls} controls, for Slant
1786
1787Left-clicking in a blank square will place a \cw{\\} in it (a line
1788leaning to the left, i.e. running from the top left of the square to
1789the bottom right). Right-clicking in a blank square will place a
1790\cw{/} in it (leaning to the right, running from top right to bottom
1791left).
1792
1793Continuing to click either button will cycle between the three
1794possible square contents. Thus, if you left-click repeatedly in a
1795blank square it will change from blank to \cw{\\} to \cw{/} back to
1796blank, and if you right-click repeatedly the square will change from
1797blank to \cw{/} to \cw{\\} back to blank. (Therefore, you can play
1798the game entirely with one button if you need to.)
1799
1800You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the
1801return or space keys will place a \cw{\\} or a \cw{/}, respectively,
1802and will then cycle them as above. You can also press \cw{/} or
1803\cw{\\} to place a \cw{/} or \cw{\\}, respectively, independent of
1804what is already in the cursor square. Backspace removes any line from
1805the cursor square.
1806
1807(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1808
1809\H{slant-parameters} \I{parameters, for Slant}Slant parameters
1810
1811These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1812\q{Type} menu.
1813
1814\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1815
1816\dd Size of grid in squares.
1817
1818\dt \e{Difficulty}
1819
1820\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. At Hard level,
1821you are required to do deductions based on knowledge of
1822\e{relationships} between squares rather than always being able to
1823deduce the exact contents of one square at a time. (For example, you
1824might know that two squares slant in the same direction, even if you
1825don't yet know what that direction is, and this might enable you to
1826deduce something about still other squares.) Even at Hard level,
1827guesswork and backtracking should never be necessary.
1828
1829\H{slant-prefs} \I{preferences, for Slant}Slant user preferences
1830
1831On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
1832on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure which way round the mouse
1833buttons work.
1834
1835
1836\C{lightup} \i{Light Up}
1837
1838\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.lightup}
1839
1840You have a grid of squares. Some are filled in black; some of the
1841black squares are numbered. Your aim is to \q{light up} all the
1842empty squares by placing light bulbs in some of them.
1843
1844Each light bulb illuminates the square it is on, plus all squares in
1845line with it horizontally or vertically unless a black square is
1846blocking the way.
1847
1848To win the game, you must satisfy the following conditions:
1849
1850\b All non-black squares are lit.
1851
1852\b No light is lit by another light.
1853
1854\b All numbered black squares have exactly that number of lights adjacent to
1855 them (in the four squares above, below, and to the side).
1856
1857Non-numbered black squares may have any number of lights adjacent to them.
1858
1859Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-lightup}.
1860
1861Light Up was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
1862
1863\B{nikoli-lightup}
1864\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/akari/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/akari/}
1865
1866\H{lightup-controls} \i{Light Up controls}
1867
1868\IM{Light Up controls} controls, for Light Up
1869
1870Left-clicking in a non-black square will toggle the presence of a light
1871in that square. Right-clicking in a non-black square toggles a mark there to aid
1872solving; it can be used to highlight squares that cannot be lit, for example.
1873
1874You may not place a light in a marked square, nor place a mark in a lit square.
1875
1876The game will highlight obvious errors in red. Lights lit by other
1877lights are highlighted in this way, as are numbered squares which
1878do not (or cannot) have the right number of lights next to them.
1879
1880Thus, the grid is solved when all non-black squares have yellow
1881highlights and there are no red lights.
1882
1883(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1884
1885\H{lightup-parameters} \I{parameters, for Light Up}Light Up parameters
1886
1887These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1888\q{Type} menu.
1889
1890\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1891
1892\dd Size of grid in squares.
1893
1894\dt \e{%age of black squares}
1895
1896\dd Rough percentage of black squares in the grid.
1897
1898\lcont{
1899
1900This is a hint rather than an instruction. If the grid generator is
1901unable to generate a puzzle to this precise specification, it will
1902increase the proportion of black squares until it can.
1903
1904}
1905
1906\dt \e{Symmetry}
1907
1908\dd Allows you to specify the required symmetry of the black squares
1909in the grid. (This does not affect the difficulty of the puzzles
1910noticeably.)
1911
1912\dt \e{Difficulty}
1913
1914\dd \q{Easy} means that the puzzles should be soluble without
1915backtracking or guessing, \q{Hard} means that some guesses will
1916probably be necessary.
1917
1918\H{lightup-prefs} \I{preferences, for Light Up}Light Up user preferences
1919
1920On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
1921on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure whether \q{this is not a
1922light} marks are shown when the square is also lit.
1923
1924
1925\C{map} \i{Map}
1926
1927\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.map}
1928
1929You are given a map consisting of a number of regions. Your task is
1930to colour each region with one of four colours, in such a way that
1931no two regions sharing a boundary have the same colour. You are
1932provided with some regions already coloured, sufficient to make the
1933remainder of the solution unique, and these cannot be changed.
1934
1935Only regions which share a length of border are required to be
1936different colours. Two regions which meet at only one \e{point}
1937(i.e. are diagonally separated) may be the same colour.
1938
1939I believe this puzzle is original; I've never seen an implementation
1940of it anywhere else. The concept of a \i{four-colouring} puzzle was
1941suggested by Alexandra Lanes; credit must also go to Nikoli and to Verity
1942Allan for inspiring the train of thought that led to me realising
1943Alex's suggestion was a viable puzzle. Thanks also to Gareth Taylor
1944for many detailed suggestions.
1945
1946\H{map-controls} \i{Map controls}
1947
1948\IM{Map controls} controls, for Map
1949
1950To colour a region, click the left mouse button on an existing
1951region of the desired colour and drag that colour into the new
1952region.
1953
1954(The program will always ensure the starting puzzle has at least one
1955region of each colour, so that this is always possible!)
1956
1957If you need to clear a region, you can drag from an empty region, or
1958from the puzzle boundary if there are no empty regions left.
1959
1960Dragging a colour using the \e{right} mouse button will stipple the
1961region in that colour, which you can use as a note to yourself that
1962you think the region \e{might} be that colour. A region can contain
1963stipples in multiple colours at once. (This is often useful at the
1964harder difficulty levels.)
1965
1966You can also use the cursor keys to move around the map: the colour of
1967the cursor indicates the position of the colour you would drag (which
1968is not obvious if you're on a region's boundary, since it depends on the
1969direction from which you approached the boundary). Pressing the return
1970key starts a drag of that colour, as above, which you control with the
1971cursor keys; pressing the return key again finishes the drag. The
1972space bar can be used similarly to create a stippled region.
1973Double-pressing the return key (without moving the cursor) will clear
1974the region, as a drag from an empty region does: this is useful with
1975the cursor mode if you have filled the entire map in but need to
1976correct the layout.
1977
1978If you press L during play, the game will toggle display of a number
1979in each region of the map. This is useful if you want to discuss a
1980particular puzzle instance with a friend \dash having an unambiguous
1981name for each region is much easier than trying to refer to them all
1982by names such as \q{the one down and right of the brown one on the
1983top border}.
1984
1985(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
1986
1987\H{map-parameters} \I{parameters, for Map}Map parameters
1988
1989These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
1990\q{Type} menu.
1991
1992\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
1993
1994\dd Size of grid in squares.
1995
1996\dt \e{Regions}
1997
1998\dd Number of regions in the generated map.
1999
2000\dt \e{Difficulty}
2001
2002\dd In \q{Easy} mode, there should always be at least one region
2003whose colour can be determined trivially. In \q{Normal} and \q{Hard}
2004modes, you will have to use increasingly complex logic to deduce the
2005colour of some regions. However, it will always be possible without
2006having to guess or backtrack.
2007
2008\lcont{
2009
2010In \q{Unreasonable} mode, the program will feel free to generate
2011puzzles which are as hard as it can possibly make them: the only
2012constraint is that they should still have a unique solution. Solving
2013Unreasonable puzzles may require guessing and backtracking.
2014
2015}
2016
2017\H{map-prefs} \I{preferences, for Map}Map user preferences
2018
2019On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
2020on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the style of the victory
2021flash and also whether the regions start out labelled with numbers.
2022
2023
2024\C{loopy} \i{Loopy}
2025
2026\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.loopy}
2027
2028You are given a grid of dots, marked with yellow lines to indicate
2029which dots you are allowed to connect directly together. Your aim is
2030to use some subset of those yellow lines to draw a single unbroken
2031loop from dot to dot within the grid.
2032
2033Some of the spaces between the lines contain numbers. These numbers
2034indicate how many of the lines around that space form part of the
2035loop. The loop you draw must correctly satisfy all of these clues to
2036be considered a correct solution.
2037
2038In the default mode, the dots are arranged in a grid of squares;
2039however, you can also play on triangular or hexagonal grids, or even
2040more exotic ones.
2041
2042Credit for the basic puzzle idea goes to \i{Nikoli}
2043\k{nikoli-loopy}.
2044
2045Loopy was originally contributed to this collection by Mike Pinna,
2046and subsequently enhanced to handle various types of non-square grid
2047by Lambros Lambrou.
2048
2049\B{nikoli-loopy}
2050\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/slitherlink/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/slitherlink/}
2051
2052\H{loopy-controls} \i{Loopy controls}
2053
2054\IM{Loopy controls} controls, for Loopy
2055
2056Click the left mouse button on a yellow line to turn it black,
2057indicating that you think it is part of the loop. Click again to
2058turn the line yellow again (meaning you aren't sure yet).
2059
2060If you are sure that a particular line segment is \e{not} part of
2061the loop, you can click the right mouse button to remove it
2062completely. Again, clicking a second time will turn the line back to
2063yellow.
2064
2065(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2066
2067\H{loopy-parameters} \I{parameters, for Loopy}Loopy parameters
2068
2069These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2070\q{Type} menu.
2071
2072\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2073
2074\dd Size of grid, measured in number of regions across and down. For
2075square grids, it's clear how this is counted; for other types of
2076grid you may have to think a bit to see how the dimensions are
2077measured.
2078
2079\dt \e{Grid type}
2080
2081\dd Allows you to choose between a selection of types of tiling.
2082Some have all the faces the same but may have multiple different
2083types of vertex (e.g. the \e{Cairo} or \e{Kites} mode); others have
2084all the vertices the same but may have different types of face (e.g.
2085the \e{Great Hexagonal}). The square, triangular and honeycomb grids
2086are fully regular, and have all their vertices \e{and} faces the
2087same; this makes them the least confusing to play.
2088
2089\dt \e{Difficulty}
2090
2091\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle.
2092\#{FIXME: what distinguishes Easy, Medium, and Hard? In particular,
2093when are backtracking/guesswork required, if ever?}
2094
2095\H{loopy-prefs} \I{preferences, for Loopy}Loopy user preferences
2096
2097On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
2098on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the following things:
2099
2100\q{Draw excluded grid lines faintly}. This is on by default: when a
2101line of the grid has been explicitly excluded from the solution by
2102right-clicking it, the line is still drawn, just in a faint grey
2103colour. If you turn this option off, excluded lines are not drawn at
2104all.
2105
2106\q{Auto-follow unique paths of edges}. This is off by default. When
2107it's on, clicking to change the status of a single grid line will
2108potentially propagate the change along multiple lines, if one or both
2109ends of the line you clicked connect to only one other line. (The idea
2110is that if two lines meet at a vertex and no other lines do at all,
2111then those lines are either both part of the loop or neither, so
2112there's no reason you should have to click separately to toggle each
2113one.)
2114
2115In the mode \q{Based on grid only}, the effects of a click will only
2116propagate across vertices that have degree 2 in the underlying grid.
2117For example, in the square grid, the effect will \e{only} occur at the
2118four grid corners.
2119
2120In the mode \q{Based on grid and game state}, the propagation will
2121also take account of edges you've already excluded from the solution,
2122so that it will do even more work for you.
2123
2124\C{inertia} \i{Inertia}
2125
2126\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.inertia}
2127
2128You are a small green ball sitting in a grid full of obstacles. Your
2129aim is to collect all the gems without running into any mines.
2130
2131You can move the ball in any orthogonal \e{or diagonal} direction.
2132Once the ball starts moving, it will continue until something stops
2133it. A wall directly in its path will stop it (but if it is moving
2134diagonally, it will move through a diagonal gap between two other
2135walls without stopping). Also, some of the squares are \q{stops};
2136when the ball moves on to a stop, it will stop moving no matter what
2137direction it was going in. Gems do \e{not} stop the ball; it picks
2138them up and keeps on going.
2139
2140Running into a mine is fatal. Even if you picked up the last gem in
2141the same move which then hit a mine, the game will count you as dead
2142rather than victorious.
2143
2144This game was originally implemented for Windows by Ben Olmstead
2145\k{bem}, who was kind enough to release his source code on request
2146so that it could be re-implemented for this collection.
2147
2148\B{bem} \W{http://xn13.com/}\cw{http://xn13.com/}
2149
2150\H{inertia-controls} \i{Inertia controls}
2151
2152\IM{Inertia controls} controls, for Inertia
2153\IM{Inertia controls} keys, for Inertia
2154\IM{Inertia controls} shortcuts (keyboard), for Inertia
2155
2156You can move the ball in any of the eight directions using the
2157numeric keypad. Alternatively, if you click the left mouse button on
2158the grid, the ball will begin a move in the general direction of
2159where you clicked.
2160
2161If you use the \q{Solve} function on this game, the program will
2162compute a path through the grid which collects all the remaining
2163gems and returns to the current position. A hint arrow will appear
2164on the ball indicating the direction in which you should move to
2165begin on this path. If you then move in that direction, the arrow
2166will update to indicate the next direction on the path. You can also
2167press Space to automatically move in the direction of the hint
2168arrow. If you move in a different direction from the one shown by
2169the arrow, arrows will be shown only if the puzzle is still solvable.
2170
2171All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.
2172In particular, if you do run into a mine and die, you can use the
2173Undo function and resume playing from before the fatal move. The
2174game will keep track of the number of times you have done this.
2175
2176\H{inertia-parameters} \I{parameters, for Inertia}Inertia parameters
2177
2178These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2179\q{Type} menu.
2180
2181\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2182
2183\dd Size of grid in squares.
2184
2185
2186\C{tents} \i{Tents}
2187
2188\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.tents}
2189
2190You have a grid of squares, some of which contain trees. Your aim is
2191to place tents in some of the remaining squares, in such a way that
2192the following conditions are met:
2193
2194\b There are exactly as many tents as trees.
2195
2196\b The tents and trees can be matched up in such a way that each
2197tent is directly adjacent (horizontally or vertically, but not
2198diagonally) to its own tree. However, a tent may be adjacent to
2199other trees as well as its own.
2200
2201\b No two tents are adjacent horizontally, vertically \e{or
2202diagonally}.
2203
2204\b The number of tents in each row, and in each column, matches the
2205numbers given round the sides of the grid.
2206
2207This puzzle can be found in several places on the Internet, and was
2208brought to my attention by e-mail. I don't know who I should credit
2209for inventing it.
2210
2211\H{tents-controls} \i{Tents controls}
2212
2213\IM{Tents controls} controls, for Tents
2214
2215Left-clicking in a blank square will place a tent in it.
2216Right-clicking in a blank square will colour it green, indicating
2217that you are sure it \e{isn't} a tent. Clicking either button in an
2218occupied square will clear it.
2219
2220If you \e{drag} with the right button along a row or column, every
2221blank square in the region you cover will be turned green, and no
2222other squares will be affected. (This is useful for clearing the
2223remainder of a row once you have placed all its tents.)
2224
2225You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the
2226return key over an empty square will place a tent, and pressing the
2227space bar over an empty square will colour it green; either key will
2228clear an occupied square. Holding Shift and pressing the cursor keys
2229will colour empty squares green. Holding Control and pressing the
2230cursor keys will colour green both empty squares and squares with tents.
2231
2232(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2233
2234\H{tents-parameters} \I{parameters, for Tents}Tents parameters
2235
2236These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2237\q{Type} menu.
2238
2239\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2240
2241\dd Size of grid in squares.
2242
2243\dt \e{Difficulty}
2244
2245\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. More difficult
2246puzzles require more complex deductions, but at present none of the
2247available difficulty levels requires guesswork or backtracking.
2248
2249
2250\C{bridges} \i{Bridges}
2251
2252\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.bridges}
2253
2254You have a set of islands distributed across the playing area. Each
2255island contains a number. Your aim is to connect the islands
2256together with bridges, in such a way that:
2257
2258\b Bridges run horizontally or vertically.
2259
2260\b The number of bridges terminating at any island is equal to the
2261number written in that island.
2262
2263\b Two bridges may run in parallel between the same two islands, but
2264no more than two may do so.
2265
2266\b No bridge crosses another bridge.
2267
2268\b All the islands are connected together.
2269
2270There are some configurable alternative modes, which involve
2271changing the parallel-bridge limit to something other than 2, and
2272introducing the additional constraint that no sequence of bridges
2273may form a loop from one island back to the same island. The rules
2274stated above are the default ones.
2275
2276Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-bridges}.
2277
2278Bridges was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
2279
2280\B{nikoli-bridges}
2281\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/Hashiwokakero/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/Hashiwokakero/}
2282
2283\H{bridges-controls} \i{Bridges controls}
2284
2285\IM{Bridges controls} controls, for Bridges
2286
2287To place a bridge between two islands, click the mouse down on one
2288island and drag it towards the other. You do not need to drag all
2289the way to the other island; you only need to move the mouse far
2290enough for the intended bridge direction to be unambiguous. (So you
2291can keep the mouse near the starting island and conveniently throw
2292bridges out from it in many directions.)
2293
2294Doing this again when a bridge is already present will add another
2295parallel bridge. If there are already as many bridges between the
2296two islands as permitted by the current game rules (i.e. two by
2297default), the same dragging action will remove all of them.
2298
2299If you want to remind yourself that two islands definitely \e{do
2300not} have a bridge between them, you can right-drag between them in
2301the same way to draw a \q{non-bridge} marker.
2302
2303If you think you have finished with an island (i.e. you have placed
2304all its bridges and are confident that they are in the right
2305places), you can mark the island as finished by left-clicking on it.
2306This will highlight it and all the bridges connected to it, and you
2307will be prevented from accidentally modifying any of those bridges
2308in future. Left-clicking again on a highlighted island will unmark
2309it and restore your ability to modify it.
2310
2311You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid: if possible
2312the cursor will always move orthogonally, otherwise it will move
2313towards the nearest island to the indicated direction. Holding Control
2314and pressing a cursor key will lay a bridge in that direction (if
2315available); Shift and a cursor key will lay a \q{non-bridge} marker.
2316Pressing the return key followed by a cursor key will also lay a
2317bridge in that direction.
2318
2319You can mark an island as finished by pressing the space bar or by
2320pressing the return key twice.
2321
2322By pressing a number key, you can jump to the nearest island with that
2323number. Letters \q{a}, ..., \q{f} count as 10, ..., 15 and \q{0} as
232416.
2325
2326The \q{G} key will draw a grey line between each pair of islands that
2327could be connected with a bridge or non-bridge but are currently not.
2328
2329Violations of the puzzle rules will be marked in red:
2330
2331\b An island with too many bridges will be highlighted in red.
2332
2333\b An island with too few bridges will be highlighted in red if it
2334is definitely an error (as opposed to merely not being finished
2335yet): if adding enough bridges would involve having to cross another
2336bridge or remove a non-bridge marker, or if the island has been
2337highlighted as complete.
2338
2339\b A group of islands and bridges may be highlighted in red if it is
2340a closed subset of the puzzle with no way to connect it to the rest
2341of the islands. For example, if you directly connect two 1s together
2342with a bridge and they are not the only two islands on the grid,
2343they will light up red to indicate that such a group cannot be
2344contained in any valid solution.
2345
2346\b If you have selected the (non-default) option to disallow loops
2347in the solution, a group of bridges which forms a loop will be
2348highlighted.
2349
2350(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2351
2352\H{bridges-parameters} \I{parameters, for Bridges}Bridges parameters
2353
2354These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2355\q{Type} menu.
2356
2357\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2358
2359\dd Size of grid in squares.
2360
2361\dt \e{Difficulty}
2362
2363\dd Difficulty level of puzzle.
2364
2365\dt \e{Allow loops}
2366
2367\dd This is set by default. If cleared, puzzles will be generated in
2368such a way that they are always soluble without creating a loop, and
2369solutions which do involve a loop will be disallowed.
2370
2371\dt \e{Max. bridges per direction}
2372
2373\dd Maximum number of bridges in any particular direction. The
2374default is 2, but you can change it to 1, 3 or 4. In general, fewer
2375is easier.
2376
2377\dt \e{%age of island squares}
2378
2379\dd Gives a rough percentage of islands the generator will try and
2380lay before finishing the puzzle. Certain layouts will not manage to
2381lay enough islands; this is an upper bound.
2382
2383\dt \e{Expansion factor (%age)}
2384
2385\dd The grid generator works by picking an existing island at random
2386(after first creating an initial island somewhere). It then decides
2387on a direction (at random), and then works out how far it could
2388extend before creating another island. This parameter determines how
2389likely it is to extend as far as it can, rather than choosing
2390somewhere closer.
2391
2392\lcont{
2393
2394High expansion factors usually mean easier puzzles with fewer
2395possible islands; low expansion factors can create lots of
2396tightly-packed islands.
2397
2398}
2399
2400\H{bridges-prefs} \I{preferences, for Bridges}Bridges user preferences
2401
2402On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
2403on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure whether possible bridge
2404locations are shown. Unlike the \q{G} key, this will persist between
2405games.
2406
2407
2408\C{unequal} \i{Unequal}
2409
2410\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.unequal}
2411
2412You have a square grid; each square may contain a digit from 1 to
2413the size of the grid, and some squares have clue signs between
2414them. Your aim is to fully populate the grid with numbers such that:
2415
2416\b Each row contains only one occurrence of each digit
2417
2418\b Each column contains only one occurrence of each digit
2419
2420\b All the clue signs are satisfied.
2421
2422There are two modes for this game, \q{Unequal} and \q{Adjacent}.
2423
2424In \q{Unequal} mode, the clue signs are greater-than symbols indicating one
2425square's value is greater than its neighbour's. In this mode not all clues
2426may be visible, particularly at higher difficulty levels.
2427
2428In \q{Adjacent} mode, the clue signs are bars indicating
2429one square's value is numerically adjacent (i.e. one higher or one lower)
2430than its neighbour. In this mode all clues are always visible: absence of
2431a bar thus means that a square's value is definitely not numerically adjacent
2432to that neighbour's.
2433
2434In \q{Trivial} difficulty level (available via the \q{Custom} game type
2435selector), there are no greater-than signs in \q{Unequal} mode; the puzzle is
2436to solve the \i{Latin square} only.
2437
2438At the time of writing, the \q{Unequal} mode of this puzzle is appearing in the
2439Guardian weekly under the name \q{\i{Futoshiki}}.
2440
2441Unequal was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
2442
2443\H{unequal-controls} \i{Unequal controls}
2444
2445\IM{Unequal controls} controls, for Unequal
2446
2447Unequal shares much of its control system with Solo.
2448
2449To play Unequal, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
2450type a digit or letter on the keyboard to fill that square. If you
2451make a mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and press
2452Space to clear it again (or use the Undo feature).
2453
2454If you \e{right}-click in a square and then type a number, that
2455number will be entered in the square as a \q{pencil mark}. You can
2456have pencil marks for multiple numbers in the same square. Squares
2457containing filled-in numbers cannot also contain pencil marks.
2458
2459The game pays no attention to pencil marks, so exactly what you use
2460them for is up to you: you can use them as reminders that a
2461particular square needs to be re-examined once you know more about a
2462particular number, or you can use them as lists of the possible
2463numbers in a given square, or anything else you feel like.
2464
2465To erase a single pencil mark, right-click in the square and type
2466the same number again.
2467
2468All pencil marks in a square are erased when you left-click and type
2469a number, or when you left-click and press space. Right-clicking and
2470pressing space will also erase pencil marks.
2471
2472As for Solo, the cursor keys can be used in conjunction with the digit
2473keys to set numbers or pencil marks. You can also use the \q{M} key to
2474auto-fill every numeric hint, ready for removal as required, or the \q{H}
2475key to do the same but also to remove all obvious hints.
2476
2477Alternatively, use the cursor keys to move the mark around the grid.
2478Pressing the return key toggles the mark (from a normal mark to a
2479pencil mark), and typing a number in is entered in the square in the
2480appropriate way; typing in a 0 or using the space bar will clear a
2481filled square.
2482
2483Left-clicking a clue will mark it as done (grey it out), or unmark it
2484if it is already marked. Holding Control or Shift and pressing an
2485arrow key likewise marks any clue adjacent to the cursor in the given
2486direction.
2487
2488(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2489
2490\H{unequal-parameters} \I{parameters, for Unequal}Unequal parameters
2491
2492These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2493\q{Type} menu.
2494
2495\dt \e{Mode}
2496
2497\dd Mode of the puzzle (\q{Unequal} or \q{Adjacent})
2498
2499\dt \e{Size (s*s)}
2500
2501\dd Size of grid.
2502
2503\dt \e{Difficulty}
2504
2505\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. At Trivial
2506level, there are no greater-than signs; the puzzle is to solve the
2507Latin square only. At Recursive level (only available via the
2508\q{Custom} game type selector) backtracking will be required, but
2509the solution should still be unique. The levels in between require
2510increasingly complex reasoning to avoid having to backtrack.
2511
2512
2513
2514\C{galaxies} \i{Galaxies}
2515
2516\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.galaxies}
2517
2518You have a rectangular grid containing a number of dots. Your aim is
2519to partition the rectangle into connected regions of squares, in such
2520a way that every region is 180\u00b0{-degree} rotationally symmetric,
2521and contains exactly one dot which is located at its centre of
2522symmetry.
2523
2524To enter your solution, you draw lines along the grid edges to mark
2525the boundaries of the regions. The puzzle is complete when the marked
2526lines on the grid are precisely those that separate two squares
2527belonging to different regions.
2528
2529This puzzle was invented by \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-galaxies}, under
2530the name \q{Tentai Show}; its name is commonly translated into
2531English as \q{Spiral Galaxies}.
2532
2533Galaxies was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
2534
2535\B{nikoli-galaxies} \W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/tentai_show/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/tentai_show/}
2536
2537\H{galaxies-controls} \i{Galaxies controls}
2538
2539\IM{Galaxies controls} controls, for Galaxies
2540
2541Left-click on any grid line to draw an edge if there isn't one
2542already, or to remove one if there is. When you create a valid region
2543(one which is closed, contains exactly one dot, is 180\u00b0{-degree}
2544symmetric about that dot, and contains no extraneous edges between two
2545of its own squares), it will be highlighted automatically; so your aim
2546is to have the whole grid highlighted in that way.
2547
2548During solving, you might know that a particular grid square belongs
2549to a specific dot, but not be sure of where the edges go and which
2550other squares are connected to the dot. In order to mark this so you
2551don't forget, you can right-click on the dot and drag, which will
2552create an arrow marker pointing at the dot. Drop that in a square of
2553your choice and it will remind you which dot it's associated with.
2554You can also right-click on existing arrows to pick them up and move
2555them, or destroy them by dropping them off the edge of the grid.
2556(Also, if you're not sure which dot an arrow is pointing at, you can
2557pick it up and move it around to make it clearer. It will swivel
2558constantly as you drag it, to stay pointed at its parent dot.)
2559
2560You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid squares and
2561lines. Pressing the return key when over a grid line will draw or
2562clear its edge, as above. Pressing the return key when over a dot will
2563pick up an arrow, to be dropped the next time the return key is
2564pressed; this can also be used to move existing arrows around, removing
2565them by dropping them on a dot or another arrow.
2566
2567(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2568
2569\H{galaxies-parameters} \I{parameters, for Galaxies}Galaxies parameters
2570
2571These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2572\q{Type} menu.
2573
2574\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2575
2576\dd Size of grid in squares.
2577
2578\dt \e{Difficulty}
2579
2580\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. More difficult
2581puzzles require more complex deductions, and the \q{Unreasonable}
2582difficulty level may require backtracking.
2583
2584
2585
2586\C{filling} \i{Filling}
2587
2588\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.filling}
2589
2590You have a grid of squares, some of which contain digits, and the
2591rest of which are empty. Your job is to fill in digits in the empty
2592squares, in such a way that each connected region of squares all
2593containing the same digit has an area equal to that digit.
2594
2595(\q{Connected region}, for the purposes of this game, does not count
2596diagonally separated squares as adjacent.)
2597
2598For example, it follows that no square can contain a zero, and that
2599two adjacent squares can not both contain a one. No region has an
2600area greater than 9 (because then its area would not be a single
2601digit).
2602
2603Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-fillomino}.
2604
2605Filling was contributed to this collection by Jonas K\u00F6{oe}lker.
2606
2607\B{nikoli-fillomino}
2608\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/fillomino/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/fillomino/}
2609
2610\H{filling-controls} \I{controls, for Filling}Filling controls
2611
2612To play Filling, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
2613type a digit on the keyboard to fill that square. By dragging the
2614mouse, you can select multiple squares to fill with a single keypress.
2615If you make a mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and
2616press 0, Space, Backspace or Enter to clear it again (or use the Undo
2617feature).
2618
2619You can also move around the grid with the cursor keys; typing a digit will
2620fill the square containing the cursor with that number; typing 0 will clear
2621it. You can also select multiple squares for numbering or clearing with the
2622return and arrow keys, before typing a digit to fill or clear the highlighted
2623squares (as above). The space bar adds and removes single squares to and from
2624the selection. Escape removes all squares from the selection.
2625
2626(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2627
2628\H{filling-parameters} \I{parameters, for Filling}Filling parameters
2629
2630Filling allows you to configure the number of rows and columns of the
2631grid, through the \q{Type} menu.
2632
2633
2634\C{keen} \i{Keen}
2635
2636\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.keen}
2637
2638You have a square grid; each square may contain a digit from 1 to
2639the size of the grid. The grid is divided into blocks of varying
2640shape and size, with arithmetic clues written in them. Your aim is
2641to fully populate the grid with digits such that:
2642
2643\b Each row contains only one occurrence of each digit
2644
2645\b Each column contains only one occurrence of each digit
2646
2647\b The digits in each block can be combined to form the number
2648stated in the clue, using the arithmetic operation given in the
2649clue. That is:
2650
2651\lcont{
2652
2653\b An addition clue means that the sum of the digits in the block
2654must be the given number. For example, \q{15+} means the contents of
2655the block adds up to fifteen.
2656
2657\b A multiplication clue (e.g. \q{60\times}), similarly, means that
2658the product of the digits in the block must be the given number.
2659
2660\b A subtraction clue will always be written in a block of size two,
2661and it means that one of the digits in the block is greater than the
2662other by the given amount. For example, \q{2\minus} means that one
2663of the digits in the block is 2 more than the other, or equivalently
2664that one digit minus the other one is 2. The two digits could be
2665either way round, though.
2666
2667\b A division clue (e.g. \q{3\divide}), similarly, is always in a
2668block of size two and means that one digit divided by the other is
2669equal to the given amount.
2670
2671Note that a block may contain the same digit more than once
2672(provided the identical ones are not in the same row and column).
2673This rule is precisely the opposite of the rule in Solo's \q{Killer}
2674mode (see \k{solo}).
2675
2676}
2677
2678This puzzle appears in the Times under the name \q{\i{KenKen}}.
2679
2680
2681\H{keen-controls} \i{Keen controls}
2682
2683\IM{Keen controls} controls, for Keen
2684
2685Keen shares much of its control system with Solo (and Unequal).
2686
2687To play Keen, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
2688type a digit on the keyboard to fill that square. If you make a
2689mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and press Space to
2690clear it again (or use the Undo feature).
2691
2692If you \e{right}-click in a square and then type a number, that
2693number will be entered in the square as a \q{pencil mark}. You can
2694have pencil marks for multiple numbers in the same square. Squares
2695containing filled-in numbers cannot also contain pencil marks.
2696
2697The game pays no attention to pencil marks, so exactly what you use
2698them for is up to you: you can use them as reminders that a
2699particular square needs to be re-examined once you know more about a
2700particular number, or you can use them as lists of the possible
2701numbers in a given square, or anything else you feel like.
2702
2703To erase a single pencil mark, right-click in the square and type
2704the same number again.
2705
2706All pencil marks in a square are erased when you left-click and type
2707a number, or when you left-click and press space. Right-clicking and
2708pressing space will also erase pencil marks.
2709
2710As for Solo, the cursor keys can be used in conjunction with the
2711digit keys to set numbers or pencil marks. Use the cursor keys to
2712move a highlight around the grid, and type a digit to enter it in
2713the highlighted square. Pressing return toggles the highlight into a
2714mode in which you can enter or remove pencil marks.
2715
2716Pressing M will fill in a full set of pencil marks in every square
2717that does not have a main digit in it.
2718
2719(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2720
2721\H{keen-parameters} \I{parameters, for Keen}Keen parameters
2722
2723These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2724\q{Type} menu.
2725
2726\dt \e{Grid size}
2727
2728\dd Specifies the size of the grid. Lower limit is 3; upper limit is
27299 (because the user interface would become more difficult with
2730\q{digits} bigger than 9!).
2731
2732\dt \e{Difficulty}
2733
2734\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. At Unreasonable
2735level, some backtracking will be required, but the solution should
2736still be unique. The remaining levels require increasingly complex
2737reasoning to avoid having to backtrack.
2738
2739\dt \e{Multiplication only}
2740
2741\dd If this is enabled, all boxes will be multiplication boxes.
2742With this rule, the puzzle is known as \q{Inshi No Heya}.
2743
2744\C{towers} \i{Towers}
2745
2746\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.towers}
2747
2748You have a square grid. On each square of the grid you can build a
2749tower, with its height ranging from 1 to the size of the grid.
2750Around the edge of the grid are some numeric clues.
2751
2752Your task is to build a tower on every square, in such a way that:
2753
2754\b Each row contains every possible height of tower once
2755
2756\b Each column contains every possible height of tower once
2757
2758\b Each numeric clue describes the number of towers that can be seen
2759if you look into the square from that direction, assuming that
2760shorter towers are hidden behind taller ones. For example, in a
27615\by\.5 grid, a clue marked \q{5} indicates that the five tower
2762heights must appear in increasing order (otherwise you would not be
2763able to see all five towers), whereas a clue marked \q{1} indicates
2764that the tallest tower (the one marked 5) must come first.
2765
2766In harder or larger puzzles, some towers will be specified for you
2767as well as the clues round the edge, and some edge clues may be
2768missing.
2769
2770This puzzle appears on the web under various names, particularly
2771\q{\i{Skyscrapers}}, but I don't know who first invented it.
2772
2773
2774\H{towers-controls} \i{Towers controls}
2775
2776\IM{Towers controls} controls, for Towers
2777
2778Towers shares much of its control system with Solo, Unequal and Keen.
2779
2780To play Towers, simply click the mouse in any empty square and then
2781type a digit on the keyboard to fill that square with a tower of the
2782given height. If you make a mistake, click the mouse in the
2783incorrect square and press Space to clear it again (or use the Undo
2784feature).
2785
2786If you \e{right}-click in a square and then type a number, that
2787number will be entered in the square as a \q{pencil mark}. You can
2788have pencil marks for multiple numbers in the same square. A square
2789containing a tower cannot also contain pencil marks.
2790
2791The game pays no attention to pencil marks, so exactly what you use
2792them for is up to you: you can use them as reminders that a
2793particular square needs to be re-examined once you know more about a
2794particular number, or you can use them as lists of the possible
2795numbers in a given square, or anything else you feel like.
2796
2797To erase a single pencil mark, right-click in the square and type
2798the same number again.
2799
2800All pencil marks in a square are erased when you left-click and type
2801a number, or when you left-click and press space. Right-clicking and
2802pressing space will also erase pencil marks.
2803
2804As for Solo, the cursor keys can be used in conjunction with the
2805digit keys to set numbers or pencil marks. Use the cursor keys to
2806move a highlight around the grid, and type a digit to enter it in
2807the highlighted square. Pressing return toggles the highlight into a
2808mode in which you can enter or remove pencil marks.
2809
2810Pressing M will fill in a full set of pencil marks in every square
2811that does not have a main digit in it.
2812
2813Left-clicking a clue will mark it as done (grey it out), or unmark it
2814if it is already marked. Holding Control or Shift and pressing an
2815arrow key likewise marks any clue in the given direction.
2816
2817(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2818
2819\H{towers-parameters} \I{parameters, for Towers}Towers parameters
2820
2821These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2822\q{Type} menu.
2823
2824\dt \e{Grid size}
2825
2826\dd Specifies the size of the grid. Lower limit is 3; upper limit is
28279 (because the user interface would become more difficult with
2828\q{digits} bigger than 9!).
2829
2830\dt \e{Difficulty}
2831
2832\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. At Unreasonable
2833level, some backtracking will be required, but the solution should
2834still be unique. The remaining levels require increasingly complex
2835reasoning to avoid having to backtrack.
2836
2837\H{towers-prefs} \I{preferences, for Towers}Towers user preferences
2838
2839On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
2840on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the style of the game
2841display. If you don't like the three-dimensional mode, selecting
2842\q{2D} will switch to a simpler display style in which towers are
2843shown by just writing their height in the square.
2844
2845
2846\C{singles} \i{Singles}
2847
2848\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.singles}
2849
2850You have a grid of white squares, all of which contain numbers. Your task
2851is to colour some of the squares black (removing the number) so as to satisfy
2852all of the following conditions:
2853
2854\b No number occurs more than once in any row or column.
2855
2856\b No black square is horizontally or vertically adjacent to any other black
2857square.
2858
2859\b The remaining white squares must all form one contiguous region
2860(connected by edges, not just touching at corners).
2861
2862Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli} \k{nikoli-hitori} who call it
2863\i{Hitori}.
2864
2865Singles was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
2866
2867\B{nikoli-hitori}
2868\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/hitori/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/hitori/}
2869
2870\H{singles-controls} \i{Singles controls}
2871
2872\IM{Singles controls} controls, for Singles
2873
2874Left-clicking on an empty square will colour it black; left-clicking again
2875will restore the number. Right-clicking will add a circle (useful for
2876indicating that a cell is definitely not black). Clicking outside the
2877grid will toggle whether black squares completely hide the numbers on
2878them, or display them in dark grey.
2879
2880You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the
2881return or space keys will turn a square black or add a circle respectively,
2882and pressing the key again will restore the number or remove the circle.
2883
2884(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2885
2886\H{singles-parameters} \I{parameters, for Singles}Singles parameters
2887
2888These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2889\q{Type} menu.
2890
2891\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2892
2893\dd Size of grid in squares.
2894
2895\dt \e{Difficulty}
2896
2897\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle.
2898
2899\H{Singles-prefs} \I{preferences, for Singles}Singles user preferences
2900
2901On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
2902on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure whether numbers on black
2903squares are visible. Unlike clicking outside the grid, this will
2904persist between games.
2905
2906\C{magnets} \i{Magnets}
2907
2908\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.magnets}
2909
2910A rectangular grid has been filled with a mixture of magnets (that is,
2911dominoes with one positive end and one negative end) and blank dominoes
2912(that is, dominoes with two neutral poles).
2913These dominoes are initially only seen in silhouette. Around the grid
2914are placed a number of clues indicating the number of positive and
2915negative poles contained in certain columns and rows.
2916
2917Your aim is to correctly place the magnets and blank dominoes such that
2918all the clues are satisfied, with the additional constraint that no two
2919similar magnetic poles may be orthogonally adjacent (since they repel).
2920Neutral poles do not repel, and can be adjacent to any other pole.
2921
2922Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Janko} \k{janko-magnets}.
2923
2924Magnets was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
2925
2926\B{janko-magnets}
2927\W{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Magnete/index.htm}\cw{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Magnete/index.htm}
2928
2929\H{magnets-controls} \i{Magnets controls}
2930
2931\IM{Magnets controls} controls, for Magnets
2932
2933Left-clicking on an empty square places a magnet at that position with
2934the positive pole on the square and the negative pole on the other half
2935of the magnet; left-clicking again reverses the polarity, and a third
2936click removes the magnet.
2937
2938Right-clicking on an empty square places a blank domino there.
2939Right-clicking again places two question marks on the domino, signifying
2940\q{this cannot be blank} (which can be useful to note deductions while
2941solving), and right-clicking again empties the domino.
2942
2943Left-clicking a clue will mark it as done (grey it out), or unmark it if
2944it is already marked.
2945
2946You can also use the cursor keys to move a cursor around the grid.
2947Pressing the return key will lay a domino with a positive pole at that
2948position; pressing again reverses the polarity and then removes the
2949domino, as with left-clicking. Using the space bar allows placement
2950of blank dominoes and cannot-be-blank hints, as for right-clicking.
2951
2952(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
2953
2954\H{magnets-parameters} \I{parameters, for Magnets}Magnets parameters
2955
2956These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
2957\q{Type} menu.
2958
2959\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
2960
2961\dd Size of grid in squares. There will be half \e{Width} \by \e{Height}
2962dominoes in the grid: if this number is odd then one square will be blank.
2963
2964\lcont{
2965
2966(Grids with at least one odd dimension tend to be easier to solve.)
2967
2968}
2969
2970\dt \e{Difficulty}
2971
2972\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle. At Tricky level,
2973you are required to make more deductions about empty dominoes and
2974row/column counts.
2975
2976\dt \e{Strip clues}
2977
2978\dd If true, some of the clues around the grid are removed at generation
2979time, making the puzzle more difficult.
2980
2981
2982\C{signpost} \i{Signpost}
2983
2984\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.signpost}
2985
2986You have a grid of squares; each square (except the last one)
2987contains an arrow, and some squares also contain numbers. Your job
2988is to connect the squares to form a continuous list of numbers
2989starting at 1 and linked in the direction of the arrows \dash so the
2990arrow inside the square with the number 1 will point to the square
2991containing the number 2, which will point to the square containing
2992the number 3, etc. Each square can be any distance away from the
2993previous one, as long as it is somewhere in the direction of the
2994arrow.
2995
2996By convention the first and last numbers are shown; one or more
2997interim numbers may also appear at the beginning.
2998
2999Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Janko} \k{janko-arrowpath}, who call it
3000\q{Pfeilpfad} (\q{arrow path}).
3001
3002Signpost was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
3003
3004\B{janko-arrowpath}
3005\W{http://janko.at/Raetsel/Pfeilpfad/index.htm}\cw{http://janko.at/Raetsel/Pfeilpfad/index.htm}
3006
3007\H{signpost-controls} \I{controls, for Signpost}Signpost controls
3008
3009To play Signpost, you connect squares together by dragging from one
3010square to another, indicating that they are adjacent in the
3011sequence. Drag with the left button from a square to its successor,
3012or with the right button from a square to its predecessor.
3013
3014If you connect together two squares in this way and one of them has
3015a number in it, the appropriate number will appear in the other
3016square. If you connect two non-numbered squares, they will be
3017assigned temporary algebraic labels: on the first occasion, they
3018will be labelled \cq{a} and \cq{a+1}, and then \cq{b} and \cq{b+1},
3019and so on. Connecting more squares on to the ends of such a chain
3020will cause them all to be labelled with the same letter.
3021
3022When you left-click or right-click in a square, the legal squares to
3023connect it to will be shown.
3024
3025The arrow in each square starts off black, and goes grey once you
3026connect the square to its successor. Also, each square which needs a
3027predecessor has a small dot in the bottom left corner, which
3028vanishes once you link a square to it. So your aim is always to
3029connect a square with a black arrow to a square with a dot.
3030
3031To remove any links for a particular square (both incoming and
3032outgoing), left-drag it off the grid. To remove a whole chain,
3033right-drag any square in the chain off the grid.
3034
3035You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid squares and
3036lines. Pressing the return key when over a square starts a link
3037operation, and pressing the return key again over a square will
3038finish the link, if allowable. Pressing the space bar over a square
3039will show the other squares pointing to it, and allow you to form a
3040backward link, and pressing the space bar again cancels this.
3041
3042(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3043
3044\H{signpost-parameters} \I{parameters, for Signpost}Signpost parameters
3045
3046These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3047\q{Type} menu.
3048
3049\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3050
3051\dd Size of grid in squares.
3052
3053\dt \e{Force start/end to corners}
3054
3055\dd If true, the start and end squares are always placed in opposite corners
3056(the start at the top left, and the end at the bottom right). If false the start
3057and end squares are placed randomly (although always both shown).
3058
3059\H{signpost-prefs} \I{preferences, for Signpost}Signpost user preferences
3060
3061On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
3062on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the style of the victory
3063effect.
3064
3065
3066\C{range} \i{Range}
3067
3068\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.range}
3069
3070You have a grid of squares; some squares contain numbers. Your job is
3071to colour some of the squares black, such that several criteria are
3072satisfied:
3073
3074\b no square with a number is coloured black.
3075
3076\b no two black squares are adjacent (horizontally or vertically).
3077
3078\b for any two white squares, there is a path between them using only
3079white squares.
3080
3081\b for each square with a number, that number denotes the total number
3082of white squares reachable from that square going in a straight line
3083in any horizontal or vertical direction until hitting a wall or a
3084black square; the square with the number is included in the total
3085(once).
3086
3087For instance, a square containing the number one must have four black
3088squares as its neighbours by the last criterion; but then it's
3089impossible for it to be connected to any outside white square, which
3090violates the second to last criterion. So no square will contain the
3091number one.
3092
3093Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli}, who have variously called
3094it \q{Kurodoko}, \q{Kuromasu} or \q{Where is Black Cells}.
3095\k{nikoli-range}.
3096
3097Range was contributed to this collection by Jonas K\u00F6{oe}lker.
3098
3099\B{nikoli-range}
3100\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/kurodoko/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/kurodoko/}
3101
3102\H{range-controls} \I{controls, for Range}Range controls
3103
3104Click with the left button to paint a square black, or with the right
3105button to mark a square with a dot to indicate that you are sure it
3106should \e{not} be painted black. Repeated clicking with either button
3107will cycle the square through the three possible states (filled,
3108dotted or empty) in opposite directions.
3109
3110You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid squares.
3111Pressing Return does the same as clicking with the left button, while
3112pressing Space does the same as a right button click. Moving with the
3113cursor keys while holding Shift will place dots in all squares that
3114are moved through.
3115
3116
3117(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3118
3119\H{range-parameters} \I{parameters, for Range}Range parameters
3120
3121These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3122\q{Type} menu.
3123
3124\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3125
3126\dd Size of grid in squares.
3127
3128\H{range-prefs} \I{preferences, for Range}Range user preferences
3129
3130On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
3131on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure which way round the mouse
3132buttons work.
3133
3134
3135\C{pearl} \i{Pearl}
3136
3137\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.pearl}
3138
3139You have a grid of squares. Your job is to draw lines between the
3140centres of horizontally or vertically adjacent squares, so that the
3141lines form a single closed loop. In the resulting grid, some of the
3142squares that the loop passes through will contain corners, and some
3143will be straight horizontal or vertical lines. (And some squares can
3144be completely empty \dash the loop doesn't have to pass through every
3145square.)
3146
3147Some of the squares contain black and white circles, which are clues
3148that the loop must satisfy.
3149
3150A black circle in a square indicates that that square is a corner, but
3151neither of the squares adjacent to it in the loop is also a corner.
3152
3153A white circle indicates that the square is a straight edge, but \e{at
3154least one} of the squares adjacent to it in the loop is a corner.
3155
3156(In both cases, the clue only constrains the two squares adjacent
3157\e{in the loop}, that is, the squares that the loop passes into after
3158leaving the clue square. The squares that are only adjacent \e{in the
3159grid} are not constrained.)
3160
3161Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli}, who call it \q{Masyu}.
3162\k{nikoli-pearl}
3163
3164Thanks to James Harvey for assistance with the implementation.
3165
3166\B{nikoli-pearl}
3167\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/masyu/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/masyu/}
3168
3169\H{pearl-controls} \I{controls, for Pearl}Pearl controls
3170
3171Click with the left button on a grid edge to draw a segment of the
3172loop through that edge, or to remove a segment once it is drawn.
3173
3174Drag with the left button through a series of squares to draw more
3175than one segment of the loop in one go. Alternatively, drag over an
3176existing part of the loop to undraw it, or to undraw part of it and
3177then go in a different direction.
3178
3179Click with the right button on a grid edge to mark it with a cross,
3180indicating that you are sure the loop does not go through that edge.
3181(For instance, if you have decided which of the squares adjacent to a
3182white clue has to be a corner, but don't yet know which way the corner
3183turns, you might mark the one way it \e{can't} go with a cross.)
3184
3185Alternatively, use the cursor keys to move the cursor. Use the Enter
3186key to begin and end keyboard \q{drag} operations. Use the Space,
3187Escape or Backspace keys to cancel the drag. Or, hold Control while
3188dragging with the cursor keys to toggle segments as you move between
3189squares.
3190
3191Pressing Control-Shift-arrowkey or Shift-arrowkey simulates a left or
3192right click, respectively, on the edge in the direction of the key.
3193
3194(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3195
3196\H{pearl-parameters} \I{parameters, for Pearl}Pearl parameters
3197
3198These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3199\q{Type} menu.
3200
3201\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3202
3203\dd Size of grid in squares.
3204
3205\dt \e{Difficulty}
3206
3207\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle.
3208
3209\dt \e{Allow unsoluble}
3210
3211\dd If this is set, then the game will be generated in the simplest
3212way: every clue square that can possibly be provided will be shown,
3213and the generator will not check whether the puzzle can be uniquely
3214solved.
3215
3216\lcont{
3217
3218This speeds up game generation, and allows much larger grids to be
3219played. At least one possible solution will still always exist, but
3220there's no guarantee that it will be unique, or that it will be
3221possible to deduce it step by step.
3222
3223}
3224
3225\H{pearl-prefs} \I{preferences, for Pearl}Pearl user preferences
3226
3227On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
3228on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the style of the game
3229display. \q{Traditional} is the default mode, in which the loop runs
3230between centres of grid squares, and each clue occupies a square.
3231\q{Loopy-style} is an alternative mode that looks more like Loopy
3232(\k{loopy}), in which the loop runs between grid \e{vertices}, and the
3233clues also occupy vertices.
3234
3235
3236\C{undead} \i{Undead}
3237
3238\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.undead}
3239
3240You are given a grid of squares, some of which contain diagonal
3241mirrors. Every square which is not a mirror must be filled with one of
3242three types of undead monster: a ghost, a vampire, or a zombie.
3243
3244Vampires can be seen directly, but are invisible when reflected in
3245mirrors. Ghosts are the opposite way round: they can be seen in
3246mirrors, but are invisible when looked at directly. Zombies are
3247visible by any means.
3248
3249You are also told the total number of each type of monster in the
3250grid. Also around the edge of the grid are written numbers, which
3251indicate how many monsters can be seen if you look into the grid along
3252a row or column starting from that position. (The diagonal mirrors are
3253reflective on both sides. If your reflected line of sight crosses the
3254same monster more than once, the number will count it each time it is
3255visible, not just once.)
3256
3257This puzzle type was invented by David Millar, under the name
3258\q{Haunted Mirror Maze}. See \k{janko-undead} for more details.
3259
3260Undead was contributed to this collection by Steffen Bauer.
3261
3262\B{janko-undead}
3263\W{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Spukschloss/index.htm}\cw{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Spukschloss/index.htm}
3264
3265\H{undead-controls} \I{controls, for Undead}Undead controls
3266
3267Undead has a similar control system to Solo, Unequal and Keen.
3268
3269To play Undead, click the mouse in any empty square and then type a
3270letter or number on the keyboard indicating the type of monster:
3271\q{G} or \q{1} for a ghost, \q{V} or \q{2} for a vampire,
3272or \q{Z} or \q{3} for a zombie. If you make a
3273mistake, click the mouse in the incorrect square and press Space to
3274clear it again (or use the Undo feature).
3275
3276If you \e{right}-click in a square and then type a letter or number, the
3277corresponding monster will be shown in reduced size in that square, as
3278a \q{pencil mark}. You can have pencil marks for multiple monsters in
3279the same square. A square containing a full-size monster cannot also
3280contain pencil marks.
3281
3282The game pays no attention to pencil marks, so exactly what you use
3283them for is up to you: you can use them as reminders that a particular
3284square needs to be re-examined once you know more about a particular
3285monster, or you can use them as lists of the possible monster in a
3286given square, or anything else you feel like.
3287
3288To erase a single pencil mark, right-click in the square and type
3289the same letter or number again.
3290
3291All pencil marks in a square are erased when you left-click and type a
3292monster letter, or when you left-click and press Space. Right-clicking
3293and pressing space will also erase pencil marks.
3294
3295As for Solo, the cursor keys can be used in conjunction with the letter
3296keys to place monsters or pencil marks. Use the cursor keys to move a
3297highlight around the grid, and type a monster letter or number to enter it in
3298the highlighted square. Pressing return toggles the highlight into a
3299mode in which you can enter or remove pencil marks.
3300
3301If you prefer plain letters of the alphabet to cute monster pictures,
3302you can press \q{A} to toggle between showing the monsters as monsters or
3303showing them as letters.
3304
3305Left-clicking a clue will mark it as done (grey it out), or unmark it
3306if it is already marked.
3307
3308(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3309
3310\H{undead-parameters} \I{parameters, for Undead}Undead parameters
3311
3312These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3313\q{Type} menu.
3314
3315\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3316
3317\dd Size of grid in squares.
3318
3319\dt \e{Difficulty}
3320
3321\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle.
3322
3323\H{undead-prefs} \I{preferences, for Undead}Undead user preferences
3324
3325On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
3326on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure whether Undead uses letters
3327or pictures to represent monsters.
3328
3329
3330\C{unruly} \i{Unruly}
3331
3332\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.unruly}
3333
3334You are given a grid of squares, which you must colour either black or
3335white. Some squares are provided as clues; the rest are left for you
3336to fill in. Each row and column must contain the same number of black
3337and white squares, and no row or column may contain three consecutive
3338squares of the same colour.
3339
3340This puzzle type was invented by Adolfo Zanellati, under the name
3341\q{Tohu wa Vohu}. See \k{janko-unruly} for more details.
3342
3343Unruly was contributed to this collection by Lennard Sprong.
3344
3345\B{janko-unruly}
3346\W{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Tohu-Wa-Vohu/index.htm}\cw{http://www.janko.at/Raetsel/Tohu-Wa-Vohu/index.htm}
3347
3348\H{unruly-controls} \I{controls, for Unruly}Unruly controls
3349
3350To play Unruly, click the mouse in a square to change its colour.
3351Left-clicking an empty square will turn it black, and right-clicking
3352will turn it white. Keep clicking the same button to cycle through the
3353three possible states for the square. If you middle-click in a square
3354it will be reset to empty.
3355
3356You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the
3357return or space keys will turn an empty square black or white
3358respectively (and then cycle the colours in the same way as the mouse
3359buttons), and pressing Backspace will reset a square to empty.
3360
3361(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3362
3363\H{unruly-parameters} \I{parameters, for Unruly}Unruly parameters
3364
3365These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3366\q{Type} menu.
3367
3368\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3369
3370\dd Size of grid in squares. (Note that the rules of the game require
3371both the width and height to be even numbers.)
3372
3373\dt \e{Difficulty}
3374
3375\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle.
3376
3377\dt \e{Unique rows and columns}
3378
3379\dd If enabled, no two rows are permitted to have exactly the same
3380pattern, and likewise columns. (A row and a column can match, though.)
3381
3382\C{flood} \i{Flood}
3383
3384\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.flood}
3385
3386You are given a grid of squares, coloured at random in multiple
3387colours. In each move, you can flood-fill the top left square in a
3388colour of your choice (i.e. every square reachable from the starting
3389square by an orthogonally connected path of squares all the same
3390colour will be filled in the new colour). As you do this, more and
3391more of the grid becomes connected to the starting square.
3392
3393Your aim is to make the whole grid the same colour, in as few moves as
3394possible. The game will set a limit on the number of moves, based on
3395running its own internal solver. You win if you can make the whole
3396grid the same colour in that many moves or fewer.
3397
3398I saw this game (with a fixed grid size, fixed number of colours, and
3399fixed move limit) at http://floodit.appspot.com (no longer accessible).
3400
3401\H{flood-controls} \I{controls, for Flood}Flood controls
3402
3403To play Flood, click the mouse in a square. The top left corner and
3404everything connected to it will be flood-filled with the colour of the
3405square you clicked. Clicking a square the same colour as the top left
3406corner has no effect, and therefore does not count as a move.
3407
3408You can also use the cursor keys to move a cursor (outline black
3409square) around the grid. Pressing the return key will fill the top
3410left corner in the colour of the square under the cursor.
3411
3412(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3413
3414\H{flood-parameters} \I{parameters, for Flood}Flood parameters
3415
3416These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3417\q{Type} menu.
3418
3419\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3420
3421\dd Size of the grid, in squares.
3422
3423\dt \e{Colours}
3424
3425\dd Number of colours used to fill the grid. Must be at least 3 (with
3426two colours there would only be one legal move at any stage, hence no
3427choice to make at all), and at most 10.
3428
3429\dt \e{Extra moves permitted}
3430
3431\dd Controls the difficulty of the puzzle, by increasing the move
3432limit. In each new grid, Flood will run an internal solver to generate
3433its own solution, and then the value in this field will be added to
3434the length of Flood's solution to generate the game's move limit. So a
3435value of 0 requires you to be just as efficient as Flood's automated
3436solver, and a larger value makes it easier.
3437
3438\lcont{
3439
3440(Note that Flood's internal solver will not necessarily find the
3441shortest possible solution, though I believe it's pretty close. For a
3442real challenge, set this value to 0 and then try to solve a grid in
3443\e{strictly fewer} moves than the limit you're given!)
3444
3445}
3446
3447\C{tracks} \i{Tracks}
3448
3449\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.tracks}
3450
3451You are given a grid of squares, some of which are filled with train
3452tracks. You need to complete the track from A to B so that the rows and
3453columns contain the same number of track segments as are indicated in the
3454clues to the top and right of the grid.
3455
3456There are only straight and 90 degree curved rails, and the track may not
3457cross itself.
3458
3459Tracks was contributed to this collection by James Harvey.
3460
3461\H{tracks-controls} \I{controls, for Tracks}Tracks controls
3462
3463Left-clicking on an edge between two squares adds a track segment between
3464the two squares. Right-clicking on an edge adds a cross on the edge,
3465indicating no track is possible there.
3466
3467Left-clicking in a square adds a colour indicator showing that you know the
3468square must contain a track, even if you don't know which edges it crosses
3469yet. Right-clicking in a square adds a cross indicating it contains no
3470track segment.
3471
3472Left- or right-dragging between squares allows you to lay a straight line
3473of is-track or is-not-track indicators, useful for filling in rows or
3474columns to match the clue.
3475
3476(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3477
3478\H{tracks-parameters} \I{parameters, for Tracks}Tracks parameters
3479
3480These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3481\q{Type} menu.
3482
3483\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3484
3485\dd Size of the grid, in squares.
3486
3487\dt \e{Difficulty}
3488
3489\dd Controls the difficulty of the generated puzzle: at Tricky level,
3490you are required to make more deductions regarding disregarding moves
3491that would lead to impossible crossings later.
3492
3493\dt \e{Disallow consecutive 1 clues}
3494
3495\dd Controls whether the Tracks game generation permits two adjacent
3496rows or columns to have a 1 clue, or permits the row or column of the
3497track's endpoint to have a 1 clue. By default this is not permitted,
3498to avoid long straight boring segments of track and make the games
3499more twiddly and interesting. If you want to restore the possibility,
3500turn this option off.
3501
3502
3503\C{palisade} \i{Palisade}
3504
3505\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.palisade}
3506
3507You're given a grid of squares, some of which contain numbers. Your
3508goal is to subdivide the grid into contiguous regions, all of the same
3509(given) size, such that each square containing a number is adjacent to
3510exactly that many edges (including those between the inside and the
3511outside of the grid).
3512
3513Credit for this puzzle goes to \i{Nikoli}, who call it \q{Five Cells}.
3514\k{nikoli-palisade}.
3515
3516Palisade was contributed to this collection by Jonas K\u00F6{oe}lker.
3517
3518\B{nikoli-palisade}
3519\W{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/five_cells/}\cw{https://www.nikoli.co.jp/en/puzzles/five_cells/}
3520
3521\H{palisade-controls} \I{controls, for Palisade}Palisade controls
3522
3523Left-click to place an edge. Right-click to indicate \q{no edge}.
3524
3525Alternatively, the arrow keys will move a keyboard cursor. Depending
3526on the \q{Cursor mode} preference (see \k{palisade-prefs}), the cursor
3527will either navigate among the grid squares, or along their
3528borders. In \q{Full-grid} mode, hold Control while pressing an arrow
3529key to place an edge, and press Shift-arrowkey to switch off an
3530edge. In \q{Half-grid} mode, press Enter to place an edge, and Space
3531to switch off an edge. In either mode, you can repeat an action to
3532perform its inverse.
3533
3534(All the actions described in \k{common-actions} are also available.)
3535
3536\H{Palisade-parameters} \I{parameters, for Palisade}Palisade parameters
3537
3538These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3539\q{Type} menu.
3540
3541\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3542
3543\dd Size of grid in squares.
3544
3545\dt \e{Region size}
3546
3547\dd The size of the regions into which the grid must be subdivided.
3548
3549\H{palisade-prefs} \I{preferences, for Palisade}Palisade user preferences
3550
3551On platforms that support user preferences, the \q{Preferences} option
3552on the \q{Game} menu will let you configure the behavior of the cursor
3553keys to either navigate among full grid squares, or along the borders
3554of the grid squares.
3555
3556\C{mosaic} \i{Mosaic}
3557
3558\cfg{winhelp-topic}{games.mosaic}
3559
3560You are given a grid of squares, which you must colour either black or
3561white.
3562
3563Some squares contain clue numbers. Each clue tells you the number of
3564black squares in the 3\times\.3 region surrounding the clue \dash
3565\e{including} the clue square itself.
3566
3567This game is variously known in other locations as: ArtMosaico, Count
3568and Darken, Cuenta Y Sombrea, Fill-a-Pix, Fill-In, Komsu Karala,
3569Magipic, Majipiku, Mosaico, Mosaik, Mozaiek, Nampre Puzzle,
3570Nurie-Puzzle, Oekaki-Pix, Voisimage.
3571
3572Mosaic was contributed to this collection by Didi Kohen. Colour design
3573by Michal Shomer. The implementation is loosely based on
3574\W{https://github.com/mordechaim/Mosaic}\cw{github.com/mordechaim/Mosaic}.
3575
3576\H{mosaic-controls} \I{controls, for Mosaic}Mosaic controls
3577
3578To play Mosaic, click the mouse in a square to change its colour.
3579Left-clicking an empty square will turn it black, and right-clicking
3580will turn it white. Keep clicking the same button to cycle through the
3581three possible states for the square.
3582
3583If you hold down the mouse button and drag, you can colour multiple
3584cells in a single action.
3585
3586You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the
3587return or space keys will turn an empty square black or white
3588respectively (and then cycle the colours in the same way as the mouse
3589buttons), and pressing Backspace will reset a square to empty.
3590
3591\H{Mosaic-parameters} \I{parameters, for Mosaic}Mosaic parameters
3592
3593These parameters are available from the \q{Custom...} option on the
3594\q{Type} menu.
3595
3596\dt \e{Width}, \e{Height}
3597
3598\dd Size of grid in squares.
3599
3600\dt \e{Aggressive generation}
3601
3602\dd With this option set, the game generator will try harder to
3603eliminate unnecessary clues on the board. This slows down generation,
3604so it's not recommended for boards larger than, say, 30\times\.30.
3605
3606\A{licence} \I{MIT licence}\ii{Licence}
3607
3608This software is \i{copyright} 2004-2024 Simon Tatham.
3609
3610Portions copyright Richard Boulton, James Harvey, Mike Pinna, Jonas
3611K\u00F6{oe}lker, Dariusz Olszewski, Michael Schierl, Lambros Lambrou,
3612Bernd Schmidt, Steffen Bauer, Lennard Sprong, Rogier Goossens, Michael
3613Quevillon, Asher Gordon, Didi Kohen, and Ben Harris.
3614
3615Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person
3616obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files
3617(the \q{Software}), to deal in the Software without restriction,
3618including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge,
3619publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software,
3620and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so,
3621subject to the following conditions:
3622
3623The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be
3624included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
3625
3626THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED \q{AS IS}, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
3627EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
3628MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND
3629NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS
3630BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN
3631ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN
3632CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
3633SOFTWARE.
3634
3635\IM{command-line}{command line} command line
3636
3637\IM{default parameters, specifying} default parameters, specifying
3638\IM{default parameters, specifying} preferences, specifying default
3639
3640\IM{Unix} Unix
3641\IM{Unix} Linux
3642
3643\IM{generating game IDs} generating game IDs
3644\IM{generating game IDs} game ID, generating
3645
3646\IM{specific} \q{Specific}, menu option
3647\IM{custom} \q{Custom}, menu option
3648
3649\IM{game ID} game ID
3650\IM{game ID} ID, game
3651\IM{ID format} ID format
3652\IM{ID format} format, ID
3653\IM{ID format} game ID, format
3654
3655\IM{keys} keys
3656\IM{keys} shortcuts (keyboard)
3657
3658\IM{initial state} initial state
3659\IM{initial state} state, initial
3660
3661\IM{MIT licence} MIT licence
3662\IM{MIT licence} licence, MIT