Unruly Black and White
Unruly Black and White is a two-color grid puzzle with just two rules and plenty of chain reactions. A few squares are already colored, and you decide the rest. Each choice tends to force the next one, so a single smart move can fill half a row.
The Unruly edition in Simon Tatham's collection was written by Lennard Sprong, and the puzzle idea itself comes from Adolfo Zanellati. It runs in a normal browser tab, so it works on phones and Chromebooks with nothing to set up.
How to play Unruly Black and White
Gray squares are empty. A left-click paints it black, while a right-click paints it white. Clicking again keeps cycling through the colors and back to gray, so mistakes are easy to undo.
Rule one: every row and every column needs an equal split of the two colors, so boards always have even sides. Rule two: three squares of the same color may never sit in a row, across or down.
Broken rules are marked in red as you go. Fill every square with both rules holding and the puzzle is finished. Presets range from 8x8 up to 14x14, and Custom adds an option that forces every row and column to be unique.
Controls
| Action | Keyboard | Mouse | Touch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Make a square black (repeat to cycle) | Arrow keys, then Enter | Left-click | Tap |
| Make a square white (repeat to cycle) | Space | Right-click | Press and hold |
| Clear a square | Backspace | Middle-click or keep clicking | Keep tapping |
| Undo, redo, new puzzle | U, R, N | Menu bar buttons | Menu bar buttons |
Tips
- Whenever two matching squares sit side by side, color the squares at both ends the opposite color.
- A single gap between two squares of the same color must be the other color.
- Count as you go. On an 8-wide row, four blacks means every other square is white.
- When a line needs only one more of a color, test each empty spot: some choices would leave three of the other color together.
- Switch your focus often. A square filled while working on a row also gives fresh information to the column through it.
- On custom boards with unique lines turned on, compare nearly finished rows. Two rows that would end up identical tell you how to fill the gaps.
If you like Unruly Black and White, try these
Range Shading PuzzleBlack and white cell logic carries over, shading squares so each number sees exactly its count.
Light Switch GridToggling cells on a grid takes over, as each press flips neighbors until the board goes dark.
Questions
What are the rules of Unruly Black and White?
Each row and column must have equal numbers of black and white squares. A run of three matching squares, across or down, is never allowed.
Can you play Unruly on a phone?
Yes. A tap makes a square black, and pressing and holding makes it white. Repeat either to cycle back to empty.
Does it need guessing?
No. Generated puzzles have one answer that logic alone can reach, so if you feel stuck, look again for pairs and gaps.
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