Odd One Out (Hemiscope)

Odd One Out is one of the daily games on Hemiscope. Each round puts four countries on the board, each shown with its flag, and three of them share something. The rule can be a continent or region, a coastline, an official language, the side of the road they drive on, EU membership, flag colours, the hemisphere, the equator, being a monarchy or being an island nation.

You tap the country that does not fit, and you get one tap per round. After each tap the game shows the answer and the rule in a sentence, such as three island nations and one that is not. In the first three rounds a label above the board names the kind of rule; the last two rounds say only No clue, so you have to work out what the three have in common yourself.

A day is five rounds. Three right is a pass, each round is worth points, and your streak only grows on a perfect five. At the end you get a share grid of green and red squares. A Practice tab deals a new set of five whenever you want more, and an Answers page lists the solutions of past days.

Hemiscope is a free collection of eight short geography and history dailies by Kyle Tora, including Hemiscope itself, Atlas, Timeline, Vault, Ladder, Pinpoint and No Idea. The games play in the browser, and the free iPhone app has all eight plus live duels and an endless higher-or-lower Survival mode.

It suits players who like quick country facts and a game that takes a minute or two, and fans of grouping puzzles who want one built around the map.