Puzzle Hex:
a better first move.

Start with the version you are playing

Despite the title, this browser version is a three-dimensional nut-sorting puzzle, not a hexagonal tile board. The first level shows two bolts, colored nuts, a step display, and undo and additional-bolt controls.

Group the colored nuts by color while respecting the available space and the move allowance shown on the level. The screenshots and controls on this page refer to the browser build hosted here. Level layouts and helper availability can change, so follow a current in-game prompt when it differs from a general example.

Your first round, step by step

1. Inspect the colors at the top of each bolt.
2. Select the exposed group of nuts you want to move.
3. Select an empty bolt or a bolt with a matching exposed color and enough room.
4. Continue grouping colors while watching the remaining-step display.

Let the result of each action settle before committing the next one. That makes it easier to separate a rule you have misunderstood from an input that did not register.

The top nut controls access

You cannot reach a color buried under another group until the nuts above it have moved. Read each bolt from the top down. A useful move does more than match a color: it uncovers a second useful move. Before selecting a group, identify the next color you will expose and where it could go.

Empty bolts are working space

An empty position is a temporary workbench. Filling it with a mixed stack removes that flexibility. When possible, use it to free a buried color and then empty it again by moving the temporary group onto its matching stack. Avoid using your only empty bolt for a move that cannot be followed up.

Check both color and capacity

A matching top color alone does not make a destination suitable. The bolt also needs enough free space. Count the visible group before moving it. If a matching bolt is nearly full, another destination may preserve more options and avoid splitting your plan across several extra moves.

A way to think through the next move

Suppose one bolt has blue above pink, a second has pink above blue, and a third is empty. Moving the first blue group to the empty bolt exposes pink. You can then compare the two pink tops and combine them where space permits. This exposes the second blue group, which can join the temporary blue stack. The principle is to use the empty bolt to unlock a pair of matching moves. Actual levels may have different capacities and additional colors, so inspect the board rather than copying this sequence blindly.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Describing this version as a hex-tile matching game.
• Using the final empty bolt without a plan to free it again.
• Repeating a back-and-forth move while a step limit is active.

When an attempt fails, identify the specific restriction: direction, available space, exposed color, or the current objective. A different restriction calls for a different adjustment. Use an undo or restart to test one new idea rather than repeating the same sequence more quickly.

One thing to practice next

Before your next transfer, state three things: the color being moved, the color it will reveal, and the destination of that newly revealed color. If you cannot name the third, inspect another bolt before committing.

You do not need a perfect run to learn something useful. Look for a decision you can explain afterward. That gives you a repeatable habit to carry into a new starting arrangement or a more complicated level.

Questions about Puzzle Hex