Tile Connect tips: clear the board faster

Lianliankan rewards fast eyes and a little planning. These habits help you beat the clock and avoid dead ends.

Understand the two-turn rule

Two matching tiles connect if a line can join them with at most two bends, passing only through empty spaces. That means there are only three shapes to look for: a straight line, an L shape (one bend) and a U or Z shape (two bends). The line may run around the outside of the board, so tiles on the same outer edge always connect.

Start from the outside

Edge tiles are the easiest pairs because they can use the border. Clearing them also opens space for the tiles behind them. Work inward like peeling an onion.

Plan pictures that appear four times

If a picture appears four times, there are three different ways to pair them. Pairing the wrong two can leave the other two blocked. Before matching, check that the remaining two still have a path or will get one soon.

Sliding levels

On levels where tiles slide after each match, clear tiles on the side they slide toward first. The gaps then fill from behind and new pairs line up next to each other. Matching on the far side tends to create scattered holes.

Combos and time

• Matches within three seconds of each other build a combo multiplier.
• Each match adds a second back to the clock, so steady progress matters more than long searches.
• If you can’t see a move in five seconds, use a hint rather than burning time; save shuffles for genuine dead ends.

Put it into practice in Tile Connect.