Two geography games, no account needed. Here is exactly how each one works, and how every category is judged.
You get a four-by-four grid of sixteen categories, drawn fresh each game from a pool of twenty-five. Twenty-six countries then arrive one at a time, eight seconds each.
For each country, tap a square it belongs to — or skip it and hope something better comes along. Fill all sixteen squares to win.
Eight seconds per country. If it runs out, that country is skipped for you. No life is lost, but the country is gone.
You have three. A wrong placement costs a life, moves you straight on to the next country, and burns one country off the end of the queue — so a mistake costs you twice. Three wrong placements ends the game.
One per game. It fills every empty square the current country fits, all at once. China often covers five or six. It is spent whether it covers six squares or none, so pick your moment.
Worth knowing: twenty-six countries is not many for sixteen squares. A player who never spends the Free Hit will usually finish on twelve or thirteen squares. Using it well is part of the game, not a bonus.
The board is visible before you press Start, and the clock does not run until you do. Take a few seconds to see what you are dealing with.
Grey areas cost people lives, so every category has a fixed ruling. These are they.
| Category | Counts when… |
|---|---|
| Island Country | Entirely surrounded by water, with no land border at all. Ireland does not count: it shares its island with Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, so it has a land border. |
| Crescent Moon on Flag | A crescent appears anywhere on the flag. |
| Red, Green & Yellow Flag | All three of those colours appear somewhere on the flag. Other colours may be present as well — the flag does not have to be only those three. |
| African Country | On the African continent. |
| Borders 6+ Countries | Six or more land neighbours. |
| Landlocked Country | No coastline on an ocean or open sea. |
| Asian Country | On the Asian continent. |
| Main Language Is English | English is the most widely spoken language, not merely an official one. Nigeria and India do not count: English is official there, but it is not what most people speak day to day. |
| Main Language Is Spanish | Spanish is the most widely spoken language. |
| Population Over 100 Million | More than 100 million people. |
| Population Under 1 Million | Fewer than 1 million people. |
| 3+ Stars On The Flag | Three or more stars, counted individually rather than as a group — however many are on the flag, they all count towards the total. |
| Capital Isn't The Largest City | The capital is not the country's biggest city, measured by city proper rather than metro area. |
| Main Language Is Arabic | Arabic is the most widely spoken language. |
| Flag Is Two Colours | Exactly two colours across the whole flag. A coat of arms or emblem brings its own colours with it, so Portugal does not count — its flag is green and red, but the shield on top adds several more. |
| Only Borders One Country | Exactly one land neighbour. Island countries border nobody, so they never qualify here. |
| Borders Exactly Two Countries | Exactly two land neighbours. |
| Flag Is Red, White & Green | All three of those colours appear somewhere on the flag. Other colours may be present as well — the flag does not have to be only those three. |
| Flag Contains Black | Black appears anywhere on the flag — a stripe, a star, an emblem, or even just a thin border between other colours. Look closely at the edges. |
| European Country | On the European continent. |
| South American Country | On the South American continent. |
| North American Country | In North America, including Central America and the Caribbean. |
| In the European Union | A current EU member state. |
| Entirely South of the Equator | No part of the country lies north of the equator. |
| Crossed By the Equator | The equator runs through the country's territory. |
Country data covers 191 sovereign states. Populations and other figures are approximate and rounded — the categories are chosen to sit well clear of any borderline, so no country is in or out on a rounding decision.
You are given one category with exactly ten answers, and ten numbered boxes. Name all ten. There are nine rounds, dealt in a shuffled order so you see every one before any repeats.
Ranked categories fill by rank — guess the largest country by area and it takes box 1. Unranked categories use a fixed order, so every answer still has its own box.
Three wrong guesses and you are out. Naming a country you have already found costs nothing, and neither does submitting an empty box.
Common short forms work: USA, US and America all match the United States; UK, Britain and Great Britain all match the United Kingdom. Small typos are forgiven on longer names, but only where there is no ambiguity — Mali and Malawi, or Niger and Nigeria, are always treated as the distinct countries they are.
All ten with no wrong guesses is a Perfect 10. All ten after a slip or two still means You Know Geo.
One round — the countries with the most land borders — has more qualifying countries than places. Five are tied on the same number of borders and only four slots remain, so the first four you name take them. The card tells you when a round works this way.