How to Solve Arrow Puzzles: A Step-by-Step Method
In an arrow puzzle every arrow has to slide off the board, and an arrow can only go when the squares in front of its head are empty. This page gives a short method you can apply to any board – from a 6 × 6 warm-up to an 18 × 18 – plus the reasoning for why it works. New to the rules? Read how to play first, or just try a board.
The method in five steps
- Scan the border. Look at the outermost ring of squares. An arrow whose head points straight out from the edge has an empty lane, so it can leave right now. Tap all of these first; each one you remove makes the picture simpler.
- Sweep row by row, then column by column. Follow each arrowhead with your eye to the board edge. If the whole path is empty, tap it. Doing this in order is faster than letting your eyes jump around, and you will not miss quiet arrows hiding in the middle.
- If nothing looks free, trace a blocker chain. Pick any arrow and find what is in front of its head. Follow that arrow's head, and again, and again. The chain always ends at an arrow with an empty lane – that is the one to tap. (Why this is guaranteed is explained below.)
- Tap, then look at what changed. Removing an arrow frees the squares it covered. Check the arrows that were pointing at that spot – they may be free now.
- Repeat until the board is empty. You never need to plan the whole solution in advance.
Why tracing a chain always works
Every board in Arrow Puzzle Hub is generated so that at least one full clearing order exists. Suppose arrow A is blocked by arrow B, and B is blocked by C. For the board to be solvable, C has to leave before B and B before A. An arrow can never end up waiting for itself – if A waited for B and B waited for A, neither could ever go, and the board would not be solvable. So following "who is blocking me?" can never loop back; the chain is finite and its last arrow has nothing in front of it. That arrow is free.
The same fact gives a second, comforting rule: removing a free arrow never makes a board harder. It only empties squares, so every other arrow keeps its options. There are no dead ends to avoid, only arrows you have not noticed yet. (The generator is described in how boards are generated.)
Worked example of a chain
Take the board from the how-to-play page: a blue arrow pointing right, and an orange arrow pointing down whose body sits in the blue arrow's lane. Blue is blocked by orange. Follow orange's head: the two squares below it are empty, so orange is free. Tap orange, then tap blue. On a real board the chain is just longer – five or six arrows instead of two – but you read it the same way.
Handling bent arrows
Only the head sets the direction; the tail can curl behind it. When you trace a chain, remember that the blocker may be a tail crossing the lane, not a head. If an arrow looks free but bumps, the arrow that flashes red is the blocker – start your chain from there.
Tips for larger boards
- Work from the outside in. Outer arrows leave first on almost every board, which exposes the interior.
- Prefer arrows that unlock several others. If two arrows are free, take the one that sits in more lanes.
- Use Relaxed mode to learn, Classic to sharpen. A blocked tap costs nothing in Relaxed; in Classic it costs a heart, which trains you to check the lane before tapping.
- Use Hint as a teacher. After a hint, ask why that arrow was free. A few of those and you will spot them yourself.
- Take a break when stuck. Come back and re-do the border scan; it is usually something on the edge you skipped.
More habits are in the strategy guide, and the glossary explains the words used here (head, lane, blocker, chain).
Frequently asked questions
Is there an order that always works?
Yes: keep tapping any free arrow. Because removing a free arrow never blocks anything, any order of free moves finishes the board.
Does the same method work on the daily puzzle?
Yes. The daily puzzle is an ordinary medium (9 × 9) board with the same rules, so the border scan and the chain trace apply unchanged.
Is there an arrow puzzle solver?
The game has a Hint button that highlights one arrow that can leave right now. It is meant for getting unstuck, not for solving whole boards, and Hint use is shown on the result card.