Masyu, the pearl puzzle
Masyu is a loop puzzle with only two kinds of clue: black pearls, where the loop must turn, and white pearls, where it must go straight. Work out how the loop passes each pearl and one single closed loop appears.
Play unlimited masyu puzzles free online, from small starter grids to large, tricky boards. If you like it, try slitherlink next: another single-loop puzzle, driven by numbers instead of pearls.
How to play Masyu
- Draw a single closed loop through the centers of the cells, moving up, down, left and right. The loop never crosses or touches itself.
- The loop must pass through every pearl. It doesn't have to visit every empty cell.
- At a black pearl the loop turns 90°, and it goes straight for at least one more cell on both sides of the turn.
- At a white pearl the loop goes straight through, and it turns in at least one of the two cells next to the pearl.
Masyu tips
Start at the edges
A black pearl one cell from the edge can't send its straight arm toward the wall, so the loop must leave it the other way. Edge pearls usually give the first sure lines.
Look for white pearls in a row
Three white pearls in a line can't all be passed straight along that line, because the loop would have nowhere to turn. So the loop crosses each of them the other way.
Mark cells the loop can't use
Cross out edges that would close a small loop too early or break a pearl rule. On masyu, what the loop can't do is often clearer than what it does.
Frequently asked questions
What does masyu mean?
Masyu comes from Japanese and is usually translated as "evil influence". The puzzle was published by Nikoli and is also known as the pearl puzzle.
Does the loop have to visit every cell?
No. It must pass through every pearl, but empty cells can be left out.
Is masyu harder than slitherlink?
They are similar loop puzzles. Masyu has fewer clues to read but stricter rules at each pearl. Many players find small masyu boards a gentle way into loop puzzles.
