how to play node_shift
turn nodes, spread a color, and finish the board in as few moves as you can.
the goal
sixteen nodes, each with an arrow and one of three colors (redcircle, bluediamond, yellowoctagon)shapes (redcircle, bluediamond, yellowoctagon). the board is solved when all sixteen match.
the objective is to solve it for a color in as few moves as possible, and your score is your move count. a day's puzzle is three in one: end on all redcircles, all bluediamonds, or all yellowoctagons, each scored on its own. optimal tells you the best score possible for a color.
taking a turn
- tap a node and it turns a quarter turn. one tap is one move.
- the rotate switch sets the way: ↻ right or ↺ left. flipping it doesn't count as a move, and optimal solutions often need it.
- the node you tap keeps its color.
the chain
then the turn travels. the neighbor your node now points at turns the same way and takes the tapped node's color, then passes it on to whatever it points at. the chain ends when an arrow points off the board, or the moment the board is one color.
the boards below are live: press or tap nodes yourself.
a dashed outline marks the tapped node, a solid one each node reached.
moves read like rA1: r or l for
right or left, then the row letter and column number.
moves: 0
press to watch the example, or click any node to try it yourself.
rA1 chain: A1 → A2 → A3 → A4 (points off the board, chain stopspoints off the board, chain stops)
which way matters
the same tap can go nowhere. here A4 turns right and faces the edge, so the chain ends before it begins. turned left, it would run the whole row.
moves: 0
press to watch the example, or click any node to try it yourself.
rA4 chain: A4 (points off the board, chain stopspoints off the board, chain stops)
color travels over anything
every node on the path takes the tapped node's color. here a bluediamond node is tapped and the redcircle nodes in its path turn bluediamond.here a bluediamond is tapped and the redcircles in its path become bluediamonds.
moves: 0
press to watch the example, or click any node to try it yourself.
rA1 chain: A1 → A2 → A3 → A4 (points off the board, chain stopspoints off the board, chain stops)
crossing its own trail
a chain can cross its own trail, turning a node again on each pass. here it loops the top-left square both ways before A1 faces out.
moves: 0
press to watch the example, or click any node to try it yourself.
rA1 chain: A1 → A2 → B2 → B1 → A1 → B1 → B2 → A2 → A1 (points off the board, chain stopspoints off the board, chain stops)
a win ends it early
here A2 goes redcirclehere A2 becomes a redcircle and faces B2, but B2 never turns: the board is already all redcircles.
moves: 0
press to watch the example, or click any node to try it yourself.
rA1 chain: A1 → A2 (board is all red, chain stopsboard is all circles, chain stops)
scores
- a color's score is the moves on the board when you solve it. your best per color is kept: yours.
- undo and reset are free, and an undo right after a reset brings the moves back.
- optimal is the fewest moves possible, solved by computer ahead of time. match it for a perfect solve.
- stuck? open optimal or yours for hints, one move at a time. a score that used hints is marked. no account needed.
- a new puzzle every day, the same for everyone.
want to get sharper? read the strategy guide.