Unruly Puzzle Online

Unruly is one of the classic one-player logic games in Simon Tatham's Portable Puzzle Collection. Fill in the black and white grid to avoid runs of three.

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Preparing the game board and controls.

What This Game Is

Unruly is a self-contained logic puzzle built around one clear objective. Each new board gives you a fresh problem to solve, so it works well for quick sessions and repeated play.

Fill in the black and white grid to avoid runs of three.

How to Play

To play Unruly, click the mouse in a square to change its colour. Left-clicking an empty square will turn it black, and right-clicking will turn it white. Keep clicking the same button to cycle through the three possible states for the square. If you middle-click in a square it will be reset to empty. You can also use the cursor keys to move around the grid. Pressing the return or space keys will turn an empty square black or white respectively (and then cycle the colours in the same way as the mouse buttons), and pressing Backspace will reset a square to empty.

Most puzzles in this collection reward deduction more than speed. Focus on the most limited choices first, use the clues to narrow the board, and avoid guesses unless the puzzle mode clearly expects them.

Beginner Tips

  • Start with the area that has the strongest clue or the fewest legal options.
  • Use marks, notes, or temporary indicators if the puzzle supports them.
  • Try to preserve flexibility instead of committing too early when multiple moves look possible.
  • If the board gets messy, restart a fresh puzzle and apply what you learned from the first run.

Official Reference

If you want the full original rule explanation, examples, and advanced options, the official manual is the best reference.

Read the official manual

Frequently Asked Questions