Garden Swap

Garden Swap is a tile-matching game set in a garden. You swap neighboring plants on an eight-by-eight board to line up three or more alike, and you must reach a target score before your moves run out.

How to play

The board is full of garden pictures: sunflowers, tulips, carrots, watermelons, mushrooms, cherries and acorns. Each level uses some or all of them.

• Swapping: move one tile onto the tile beside it or above or below it. The two trade places.
• A swap must make a match. It only counts if it lines up three or more of the same picture in a row or a column. A swap that makes nothing is not allowed, so you cannot waste a move by mistake.
• After a match: the matched tiles vanish, the tiles above fall down, and new ones drop in from the top.
• Chains: if the falling tiles line up by chance, they clear too. Each step in a chain is worth more than the one before: double, then triple, and so on.
• Scoring: each cleared tile is worth 10 points. A line of four earns a 20-point bonus, and a line of five or more earns 50. Breaking a stone adds 20. Chains multiply the total.
• Ending: the game ends the moment you reach the goal score, or when you run out of moves. The top of the screen shows your score, the goal and the moves left.

The board never starts with a match already on it. If no swap is possible at some point, the game reshuffles the tiles and tells you.

On a phone, drag one tile toward its neighbor, or tap one tile and then the other. On a computer, drag with the mouse, or use the arrow keys to move a cursor and press Enter or Space to pick up and swap. You get three Hints in every game, and each one shows a swap that works.

The levels

Each level has a number of plant kinds, a move limit and a goal. More kinds on the board means fewer matches by chance.

• Easy: 5 kinds, 30 moves, a goal of 2,800 points.
• Medium: 6 kinds, 30 moves, a goal of 2,300.
• Hard: 6 kinds, 28 moves, a goal of 2,900, and eight gray stones in the way.
• Expert: 7 kinds, 25 moves and a goal of 1,950.

The goals do not climb in a straight line, because the boards differ. With fewer kinds, matches happen more often, so the same effort earns more points. The goals were set from tests in which a computer player took the best-scoring swap at every turn.

Today's game

The daily game is played at Medium. Everyone who plays on the same calendar day starts with the same board.

Tips

1. Look at the bottom rows first. A match low on the board shifts many tiles, which often sets off a chain.
2. Prefer swaps that make four or five in a row. The line bonus is bigger than it looks.
3. Do not count only the matches you see. A move near the bottom can drop new tiles into position for the next match.
4. Break stones by matching next to them. A stone costs you space, and each one you clear earns 20 points.
5. Keep an eye on the moves left. If the goal looks far away, take only swaps that clear a lot.
6. Save your three Hints for when you are stuck. Each one points at a swap that is allowed.
7. If the board looks full of one kind, work on the other plants first. The common kind will make matches by itself.

A bit of history

Swap-and-match games became one of the most popular puzzle styles on computers and phones, and they suit short sessions.

Questions

Can I swap if it does not make a match? No. Only swaps that line up three or more are allowed, so a failed swap does not use a move.

What are the gray stones? Stones cannot be swapped or matched. A match right next to one breaks it.

What if there are no moves left? The game reshuffles the board for you and lets you carry on.

Does the game end when I reach the goal? Yes. You see your score and the moves you had left, and then you can play again.