An arrow puzzle is a logic game played on a board full of arrows. You tap an arrow and it flies off the board in the direction it points, but only if nothing is in its way. The goal is to clear every arrow. Because arrows block each other, the challenge is working out the order.
You’ll find the genre under many names: tap away, arrow escape, arrows out, arrow maze, unblock the arrows. The details vary, but nearly all of them share the same core rule.
The one rule
Every arrow has a direction. Look from its head to the edge of the board, in that direction. If the line is empty, the arrow is free and leaves when you tap it. If another arrow is in that line, it’s blocked, and tapping it is a mistake.
That’s the whole game. Everything interesting comes from how the arrows are packed together: one arrow blocks another, which blocks a third, and the board comes apart only when you find the thread to pull.
How arrow puzzle games differ
The rule stays the same; what changes from game to game is everything around it.
- Arrow shape. In some games every arrow is a short straight piece. In others, Arrowslide among them, arrows are long and bend round corners, sliding out along their own bodies like a train on its track.
- The board. Some boards are plain grids. Others are cut into shapes or drawn as pictures, so the puzzle has a silhouette.
- Mistakes. Some games let you tap blocked arrows freely. Others take a life, a heart or a move for every wrong tap, which turns guessing into a real cost.
- Pressure. Some add timers or move limits. Others, like Arrowslide, have none, so the only pressure is the puzzle itself.
- Help. Most offer hints of some kind. The useful ones point at an arrow that opens up the board, not just any arrow that happens to be free.
- Difficulty. Levels usually grow in size. The best games mix big, demanding boards with easier ones, so the difficulty rises without becoming a wall.
Why arrow puzzles are so satisfying
- They’re readable. Every piece of information is on the board in front of you. There’s no luck and nothing hidden.
- Every move feels good. Each arrow that flies off is a small win, and freeing one often frees several more in a chain.
- Mistakes are fair. A blocked arrow was always blocked. You could have seen it, which makes you want to look harder next time, not quit.
- They suit short and long sessions. A small board takes a minute; an Expert board can be a proper half-hour think.
Are arrow puzzles always solvable?
In a well-made game, yes. Arrowslide checks every board before you see it to make sure it can be cleared completely, so there is always at least one free arrow. It also helps that removing an arrow can never block another one: as long as you only tap free arrows, you can’t get yourself stuck.
How Arrowslide plays the genre
Arrowslide is our take on the arrow puzzle. Its arrows are long and winding, boards are packed solid and often shaped like pictures, and there are no timers, no energy and no ads in the middle of a level. You get three hearts per board, hints that point at the arrow holding up the rest, and endless levels that build up to Expert boards of a hundred arrows or more. It’s free on Android.
Ready to play? Start with how to play Arrowslide, then nine tips for solving arrow puzzles.