NumberPath (PuzzleMadness)

About NumberPath (PuzzleMadness)

Every cell of a NumberPath grid holds a 1, 2, 3 or 4. One cell is coloured green as the start and another red as the finish. Your line moves from cell to neighbouring cell, horizontally, vertically or diagonally, and the numbers along it must follow the cycle 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4 without a break until the line reaches the red cell.

The grid looks like a jumble at first, and most cells have more than one neighbour holding the next number, so the puzzle is really a maze: following the sequence forward from the start opens up branches, some of which run into dead ends. Working back from the red cell, where the number before it is fixed, narrows the choices from the other side. The site's example is a 6x6 grid whose path snakes through most of the cells, with diagonal steps crossing one another in places.

PuzzleMadness is a free puzzle website run by Dewi, a software developer who started out making games for the PlayStation 2, Nintendo Wii and DS and now builds the site as a hobby. It carries dozens of puzzle types, from classic sudoku to newer logic grids, and each one gets its own dated puzzle every day at each difficulty. NumberPath comes in Small, Medium and Large versions plus a Mixed page, and the same day's NumberPath puzzle is shared by everyone who opens it.

The site checks your grid as you go and tells you when it is finished; it does not publish solutions. Each completed puzzle earns a score, and scores feed a monthly and an all-time NumberPath leaderboard, where only your best attempt at a puzzle counts. Older days stay in the archive, so a missed puzzle can still be played later and still counts toward the current month. Playing needs no account; a free registration gives you a username on the leaderboards and a cloud save. The pages carry adverts.

How to play NumberPath (PuzzleMadness)

1. Open today's NumberPath page on PuzzleMadness and choose a difficulty from the menu above the grid.
2. Start on the green cell and draw a line to a neighbouring cell, in any of the eight directions.
3. Step only onto the next number in the cycle 1, 2, 3, 4, then back to 1.
4. Keep the line unbroken until it reaches the red cell.
5. The site tells you when the grid is complete and adds your score; registered players appear on the leaderboards.

Tips

• Work backwards from the red cell too: its number tells you which number the cell before it must hold.
• When several neighbours hold the next number, look a few steps ahead to see which branch keeps going.
• Diagonal moves are allowed, so check all eight neighbours before deciding a route is stuck.
• Missed a day? Earlier puzzles are in the archive, and finishing one still counts toward this month's leaderboard.

Questions