Black means turn, white means go straight. Those are nearly all the rules, yet a handful of pearls can pin down an entire path. Pearl Loop Puzzle unblocked asks you to draw a single closed loop that passes through every pearl and obeys its color.
It belongs to Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection, and James Harvey helped create it. Like the rest of the set, new boards are generated whenever you want one.
How to play Pearl Loop Puzzle
The loop moves between the centers of neighboring squares, never diagonally. It has to close into one ring with no crossings and no branches. Squares without pearls can be part of the loop or left empty.
At a black pearl the loop must turn a corner, and it then has to go straight for at least one more square in both directions before turning again. At a white pearl the loop runs straight through, but it has to turn on at least one of the squares right before or after.
Click edges or drag through squares to draw, and right-click to cross out an edge you know is empty. The Type menu sets the size and difficulty, and Preferences lets you draw on the grid lines instead.
Controls
| To… | Keyboard | Mouse | Touch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Draw or erase loop segments | Enter to start and end a keyboard drag, arrows to move | Left-click an edge, or left-drag through squares | Tap an edge, or drag through squares |
| Mark an edge with a cross | Shift + arrow | Right-click the edge | Press and hold the edge |
| Toggle the edge next to the cursor | Ctrl + Shift + arrow | — | — |
| Cancel a keyboard drag | Space, Escape or Backspace | — | — |
| New game, undo, redo | N, U, R | Menu buttons above the grid | Menu buttons above the grid |
Tips
- Push black pearls off walls. When a black pearl sits on the border or right next to it, its arm can't point toward the wall, so it must reach two squares the other way.
- Line up white pearls. Three whites in a straight row must all be crossed at right angles to that row.
- Separate neighboring blacks. When two blacks touch, each one's arm has to point away from its partner.
- Cross out edges early. Every edge you rule out narrows down where the loop can still go.
- Don't seal it early. A little ring that shuts before it has picked up every pearl can never be the answer.
Pearl Loop Puzzle questions
Does the loop have to go through every square?
No. It only has to pass through every pearl and form one ring. Empty squares can be skipped.
How do I draw long paths on a phone?
Slide a finger across the cells and the path follows along. Going back over a drawn part removes it, and a long press on an edge marks it with a cross.
What sizes are available?
The Type menu has several preset grids at two difficulty levels, and Custom lets you set your own width and height.
