TERRAZZO · Daily hints · Guides
What are polyomino puzzles?
A polyomino is a shape made of squares joined edge to edge. Polyomino puzzles ask you to fit such shapes into a space. Terrazzo is a calm daily version for iPhone and iPad.
- The pieces are simple. Each one is a small cluster of squares, and you can turn it to fit.
- Terrazzo adds colour and Laws. The pieces must fit, and the finished colours must also obey rules.
- There is no clock and no ad. You can set it down and return later.
What is a polyomino, in plain words?
Take some squares and join them along their sides. Two squares make a domino. Three make a tromino, four a tetromino, and so on.
Many classic falling-block games use pieces from this family. In a polyomino puzzle, nothing falls. You choose where each piece rests.
How do polyomino puzzles work?
You are given a space and a set of pieces. Your job is to place every piece so nothing overlaps and nothing is left over. Pieces can usually be turned.
The challenge is that many pieces fit in many places. Only one arrangement works for the whole set. Good solvers think about the awkward corners first.
How does Terrazzo use polyominoes?
Each day's mosaic is built from a handful of polyomino stones. You turn them through four orientations and fit them into the frame. Each stone has coloured cells, and some cells carry a small glyph.
Fitting the shapes is only half of it. The colours must also satisfy the day's Laws.
- Kinship. Same-coloured stones that touch form a region. The frame's edge lists the sizes those regions must have.
- Solitude. No two sun cells may touch, not even corner to corner.
- The Vein. The vein cells must form one unbroken path between the frame's two notches, with no branches and no loops.
Most days use one or two Laws. This makes the puzzle more than a jigsaw of shapes. A stone that fits the hole may still break a Law.
How do I get better at them?
A few habits help in any polyomino puzzle.
- Start where space is tight. A corner or a narrow strip has the fewest options.
- Place the biggest piece early. Small pieces are easy to fit later.
- Try every turn before you give up. A stone that fails one way often fits another.
In Terrazzo, add one more habit. Check each stone against every Law in play, not only the one on your mind. Our mosaic puzzle tips go through this step by step.
Are they good for relaxing?
They can be, if the game lets you go slowly. A puzzle with a timer turns shape fitting into a race. One without a timer lets you notice shapes and turn them over in your mind.
Terrazzo gives you one puzzle a day, the same for everyone. When it is done, the colours settle into a picture of something real, with a short story. If you want a fuller walk-through, read how to play Terrazzo.
What if I get stuck?
Lift the last two or three stones and try again. If that does not help, the daily hints come in three steps: a nudge at 00:00 UTC, the Laws in plain words at 08:00 UTC, and the answer at 16:00 UTC.
The daily puzzle is free to play. The archive of past mosaics is part of TERRAZZO+, which is free for everyone for now.
Try today's puzzle
Open today's page for the day's hints, then fit the first stone. Terrazzo is free to play on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.