Play Tapa Online — Free
Shade cells to form a single connected wall. Clue numbers in white cells show the lengths of shaded blocks in the 8 surrounding cells.
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About Tapa
Tapa is a Turkish logic puzzle where you shade cells to form a single connected group of black cells, guided by clue numbers inside certain white cells. The clue numbers describe the pattern of consecutive shaded cells in the ring of eight cells surrounding the clue cell — similar to Nonogram clues, but arranged circularly.
Three additional rules apply: clue cells themselves are always unshaded, no 2×2 block of cells may be entirely shaded, and all shaded cells must form one connected group. The circular arrangement of neighbors and the interaction of multiple nearby clues creates rich deductive possibilities unique among logic puzzles.
Tapa was invented by Serkan Yürekli and has become one of the most popular logic puzzles in the World Puzzle Federation community. Its combination of visual logic (connectivity, 2×2 avoidance) and local pattern matching (clue interpretation) gives it a flavor unlike any Nikoli puzzle.
Clue cells with a single large number are the most constraining — a “7” in a non-corner cell means nearly all surrounding cells are shaded. Start with these, then apply the 2×2 prohibition to eliminate invalid continuations.
Frequently asked questions
What is Tapa?
Tapa is a logic puzzle where you shade cells to create one connected group. Clue cells (which stay white) show the lengths of consecutive shaded blocks among their 8 neighbors. The shaded cells cannot form a 2×2 square.