Switchboard is a free daily connect-the-pairs puzzle. Matching shapes sit on a small board of gray tracks. Draw a line between each pair, with no two lines crossing or sharing a dot, and you're done.
How do you play Switchboard?
- Press on a shape and drag along the gray tracks to its twin. The line follows your finger, one dot at a time.
- Join every pair. Each line needs its own dots, so one pair's route can block another's.
- Some dots have no tracks at all, and some tracks are missing. Lines only travel where a track is drawn.
- Drag back along a line to shorten it, or drag from any dot on a line to redraw from there. Tap a shape to clear its line.
- Tap the start-over button twice to clear the whole board.
- Join every pair to finish. Each pair takes a little bow, and your results appear.
There is no way to lose. A line that hits a rule flashes red at the spot and tells you why, so you're never left guessing.
What do the tools do?
Most days add a few special dots. Each one gets a short animated how-to the first time it shows up in your puzzle.
- Crossing. A pill showing two shapes. It's the only place two lines may cross, and both of those pairs must pass through it. No other line can use it.
- Lock and key. A lock is closed until some line covers its key. Any line can cover the key. If you later clear that line, the lock shuts again and any line through it is cut back.
- Checkpoint. A small hollow copy of one pair's shape. That pair's line has to pass through it, and no other line can. It fills in once you've gone through.
- Gate. A gray disc with a colored dot. Only the line of that color may pass. Unlike a checkpoint, it doesn't have to use it.
- Portal. Two matching gray rings. Draw into one and your line comes out of the other. Keep drawing from there. A line can't end inside a portal.
The rules don't change, only the board. Lines still can't cross anywhere except at a crossing.
How does Switchboard change through the week?
More pairs and more tools as the week goes on. The board is always 5 dots wide and 7 tall. Here is what the puzzle aims for each day:
| Day | Pairs | Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 4 | 2 (no portals) |
| Tuesday | 4 | 2 |
| Wednesday | 4 | 3 |
| Thursday | 4 | 3, and the same tool can appear twice |
| Friday | 4 | 4 |
| Saturday | 5 | 4 |
| Sunday | 5 | 5 |
A board has at most one pair of portals. Now and then a tool doesn't fit the day's layout and gets left out. Switchboard is in beta, so these numbers are still being tuned.
Tips for untangling the board
- Don't trust the shortest route. A solver checks each puzzle. Boards are picked so that at least one pair's most direct line usually blocks the others. If a line looks too easy, check what it cuts off.
- Start with the pair that has the fewest options. A shape in a corner, or one boxed in by missing tracks, has one or two ways out. Draw it first.
- Plan the key early. The key usually sits off everyone's natural path, so some line has to bend to cover it. Decide which before you draw the rest.
- Route the crossing pairs together. Both must go through the same dot, one across and one down. Sketch both before you commit either.
- Use Hint when you're stuck, not when you're close. It either shows one full line to try, or flags the lines that make a solution impossible.
What does Hint do?
Hint looks at the lines you've finished. If one of them can't be part of any solution, it flags that line as in the way. Otherwise it draws a suggested route for one unfinished pair, usually the shortest one you can draw right now. Hint then rests for five seconds before you can use it again.
There's no undo button, but you rarely need one. Dragging back along a line takes it back step by step.
How is Switchboard scored?
Your score is your solve time. Signed-in players get a daily leaderboard and a friends-only board. Finishing extends your streak if you also finished yesterday.
Your results also compare your total line length, in steps between dots, with the shortest solution the game found. Match it and the heading says Perfect! Beat it, which is possible, and the game tells you so. A longer solve still counts as a win.
How do you share your result?
The Share button copies the day number and your time:
Switchboard #10 / 1:05 perdiem.games/switchboard
It shows nothing about the board, so it's safe to post.
On a phone, Share opens your share sheet.
Is Switchboard like Flow Free?
It's the same family. Flow Free and Numberlink-style puzzles also ask you to join matching pairs without crossing lines. Switchboard adds gaps in the tracks and five tools: crossings, locks and keys, checkpoints, gates and portals. It also doesn't ask you to fill every dot, and it scores you on how short your lines are. Switchboard isn't affiliated with Flow Free or its makers.
Common questions
Is every puzzle solvable?
Yes. A solver checks every board before it goes out. It also looks for the shortest solution, which is what your Perfect is measured against.
Can I play past puzzles?
Yes. Past days open from the week strip on your results screen.
Can I play again after I finish?
Yes. The Hint button turns into Play again. Only your first finish of the day counts toward your stats.
Do I need an account?
No. Switchboard is free and runs in your browser. An account keeps your streak across devices and gets you leaderboards and friends.