Puzzle games

Puzzle games you can open in a browser tab and play in five minutes or fifty. They need no signup and nothing to install, and every one works with a mouse, a keyboard or a finger on a phone screen.

What is in this section

Six puzzles, and no two ask the same thing of you.

• Minesweeper is pure deduction. Every number tells you how many mines touch that square, and with care the whole field can be worked out rather than guessed. The first square you open is always safe.
• 2048 is about planning. Slide the tiles, merge equal numbers into their double, and keep the grid from filling up.
• GemBurst is a match-3 game played against the clock. Line up three gems or more, and every match buys a few more seconds.
• Miaojong is a mahjong solitaire: 144 tiles stacked in layers, cleared in matching pairs. The game itself is in English.
• Sudoku is the best known logic puzzle there is: nine by nine, every digit once per row, column and box. Four difficulties, and every grid is new and has exactly one solution.
• Kanji Quiz is a Japanese quiz: one kanji, four emoji, and only one means the same thing. It starts with the kanji of the first Japanese school year and climbs a grade at a time.

Which one to start with

If you like certainty, start with Sudoku or Minesweeper: a board that looks impossible often has a square you can prove is safe. If you prefer to think a few moves ahead, 2048 rewards a plan and punishes panic. GemBurst is the one for a quick burst of speed, Miaojong for a slow, calm session, and Kanji Quiz for learning something while you play.

Why puzzle games work in a browser

A puzzle does not need fast reflexes or a big screen. It needs a clear board and rules you can hold in your head, which is why these games have lasted for decades on every kind of computer. Here they load in seconds and keep your best score on your device.

Every game page explains the full rules, the scoring and a few strategies that actually help, so you can read before you play.