How to play Hence

Hence is a free daily logic puzzle game. Every day you get two puzzles, a quick 4x4 and a bigger 6x6, and everyone in the world gets the same ones.

Each puzzle is a grid of picture tiles. Every row holds one kind of picture, and your job is to work out which column each picture goes in, using the picture clues. Every puzzle can be solved by logic alone. No guessing, ever.

The goal

Fill the grid so that every picture sits in its correct column. Use the clues to rule pictures out, square by square, until only one possibility is left for each one.

How to read the clues

Clues are small groups of pictures. How they are laid out tells you what they mean: tiles stacked on top of each other are about columns, and tiles side by side are about positions. A red ✕ turns a clue into its opposite.

Colors

Each clue tile has the color of the row it goes on, so you can tell at a glance where it belongs.So the Ghost is in the Monsters row and the Crown is in the Hats row.

Position clues

The middle tile is in the column between the other two, in either order.So the Crown is between the Donut and the Balloon.Good place to start: the middle tile can't be on either edge.

The first tile is somewhere to the left of the second, however far.So the Train is left of the Moon.Good place to start: the left tile can't be on the far right, and the right tile can't be on the far left.

These tiles are in columns next to each other, in either order.So the Rocket is next to the Sun.

The red ✕ means these tiles are not in columns next to each other.So the Robot is not next to the Piano.

Same column clues

These tiles are in the same column.So the Ghost is in the same column as the Crown.

All three tiles are in the same column.So the Yeti, the Donut and the Submarine share a column.

The top tile is in the same column as one of the other two, but not both. That also means those two are never in the same column as each other.So the Sloth is with the Popsicle or the Drum, not both, and the Popsicle and the Drum are not in the same column.

The red ✕ means these tiles are not in the same column.So the Cyclops is not in the Top hat's column.

Playing the board

• Tap a square to open it and see the pictures it could still hold.
• Tap a picture to rule it out. Tap it again to bring it back.
• Tap the ✓ under a picture to place it in that square.
• Tap a clue you have used to fade it out, so the ones left stand out. Tap it again to bring it back.
• Drag clues to put related ones next to each other.
• The ⇄ button shows your faded clues again and fades the rest. Tap it a second time to swap back.

Where to start

Staring at a fresh board? Start with a three across clue. Its middle tile can't sit on either edge, so it rules out two squares straight away. Arrow clues are the next best opening: the left tile can't be on the far right, and the right tile can't be on the far left.

New to Hence? The game opens with a short tutorial the first time you play, and you can play it again any time from Help under the board.

Hints and medals

If you are stuck, Hint shows you a next step.

Solve it flawlessly and you win the gold crown. Make a mistake and you win the silver viking helmet. Use hints and you win the bronze cowboy hat, and if you made mistakes and used hints, you win the party hat.

Settings that help

• Catch my mistakes as I go. When this is on, a move that contradicts the solution is refused the moment you make it. When it is off, nothing is stopped and the board is only checked once it is full.
• Dark mode puts a dark page around the board. The tiles keep their colors either way.
• Your stats track your streak, your best streak, your flawless solves and your fastest times for each size.

The two daily puzzles

• 4x4: the quick one. A couple of minutes, perfect for a coffee break.
• 6x6: the main event. A bigger grid, more clues, more deduction.

Both are free, both are the same for everyone every day, and both play in your browser. No account, no download.

Tips for faster solves

1. Open with a three across or arrow clue to rule out the edges fast.
2. Fade clues you have fully used so the remaining ones stand out.
3. Drag related clues next to each other to spot combinations.
4. When only two pictures are left in a square, check both against every clue you haven't faded.
5. Leave "Catch my mistakes as I go" on while you are learning, then turn it off when you want the full challenge.

Writing about Hence? The press kit has the facts, the logo and screenshots.