How to play Twinlatch
Twinlatch is a picture logic puzzle with a rule of its own: twin clues, where one number spans two rows. Here is how to read ordinary clues and twin clues, the logic that solves every board without guessing, and how the ladder, the Daily and Pro work.
The rules
Each row and column has a clue. In an ordinary line, every number is an unbroken run of filled cells, listed in order, with at least one empty cell between runs. A clue of 3 1 means a run of three, a gap of one or more, then a single cell. Fill the cells the clues force, cross off the cells that must stay empty, and the picture appears.
A line counts as finished once its filled cells match the clue, so you don't have to cross every leftover cell. Every puzzle is a named picture on a 5×5, 10×10 or 15×15 board. There are no lives and no fail state: a wrong mark never ends a puzzle.
Twin clues
Some boards latch two neighbouring rows together. 101 of the 107 ladder pictures have at least one latched pair, and practice boards use them too.
One shape, two rows
A raspberry twin number drawn across both rows' clue lanes counts one filled shape that touches both rows. Its cells are joined edge to edge, never diagonally, and the number is the shape's total size.
Everything else is ordinary
Every other number in a latched pair belongs to the one row it sits in, and is a plain run in that row.
Read the pair together
Neither latched row can be solved alone. A twin number of 20 on a 10-wide board means both rows are completely full; a twin number of 2 is one cell in each row, directly above and below each other.
Columns are unchanged
Column clues read the ordinary way, so they are often the fastest route into a latched pair.
Solving tips
Every Twinlatch board has exactly one solution that logic alone reaches. You never need to guess.
- 01Start with the overlap.Add up a line's clue numbers plus one gap between each, then subtract from the line length. Any run longer than that slack has cells that are filled wherever it sits. On a 10-cell line, a clue of 7 has a slack of 3, so the middle four cells must be filled.
- 02Size up the twin shape.A twin number must reach both rows, so it needs at least one cell in each, stacked. A large twin number on a small board leaves little room for anything else in the pair; work out how much of each row it has to cover.
- 03Use the columns to anchor the pair.A column run that crosses both latched rows is part of a twin shape. A column that is empty in one of the rows rules out that spot for any vertical link.
- 04Cross off what can't fit.Gaps shorter than the smallest remaining run are empty, and so is the space beyond a finished run. Crosses matter as much as fills, because they shrink the room left for everything else.
- 05Alternate rows and columns.Each new fill or cross gives the lines it touches new information. Sweep the rows and pairs, then the columns, and repeat. On 15×15 boards this back-and-forth does most of the work.
Controls and helpers
Fill and cross
Tap a cell to fill it, or switch the brush to cross. Tap a marked cell again to clear it. The Cross off first setting makes a plain tap cross instead of fill.
Paint a stroke
Drag across cells to paint the same mark along a row or column. Undo or redo takes back the whole stroke as one decision.
Loupe and rulers
On large boards a loupe magnifies the cell under your finger, and the row and column ruler highlights the line you're on.
From ink to picture
A solved board develops from ink into a coloured picture and joins your gallery.
The hint
Reveal one cell fills or crosses the next cell that follows logically from the board as it stands, and you can undo it. If you've made a wrong fill, the hint works from that board too, so clear doubtful cells before asking. Hints are unlimited on Free and Pro, and switched off on today's Daily.
The 107-picture ladder
The ladder runs from Gentle to Severe, difficulty first and then board size. Each board is graded by the solver's measured effort.
| Tier | Puzzles | 5×5 | 10×10 | 15×15 | With twin clues |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gentle | 1–26 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 25 |
| Steady | 27–52 | 7 | 12 | 7 | 24 |
| Tricky | 53–81 | 7 | 12 | 10 | 28 |
| Severe | 82–107 | 4 | 12 | 10 | 24 |
The pictures span objects, nature, animals, places, symbols and letters. Practice deals fresh boards in the size you choose, with an optional difficulty, and they pass the same one-solution, no-guessing check as the ladder.
The Daily
Everyone gets the same Daily, built from the UTC date, and a new one arrives at 00:00 UTC. The size follows the weekday: 5×5 on Monday, 10×10 Tuesday to Thursday, and 15×15 Friday to Sunday.
You get one ranked attempt per day. When you finish, the server replays your move log to confirm the solve, and results rank by time, then mistakes. No account is needed. Hints and mistake checking are off on today's Daily for everyone. Offline and archive runs can be played, but they are clearly marked unranked.
From 31 October 2026 the ranked Daily uses twin clues too. Until then it uses classic clues, so players on every version are ranked on the same board.
Solving the Daily builds your streak. Pro players also get a weekly Streak Saver.
Twinlatch Free vs Pro
No ads, lives or energy on either tier. The ranked Daily is identical for everyone.
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Tutorial and today's ranked Daily | Included | Included |
| Ladder | First 26 (the Gentle tier) | All 107 |
| Practice boards | 3 a day | Unlimited |
| Hints | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Daily archive | Today only | Every past day |
| Mistake check | Not included | Included, outside today's Daily |
| Stats by board size | Not included | Included |
| Weekly Streak Saver | Not included | Included |
Free practice resets at midnight UTC. Pro comes with the Twinlatch Full Game Unlock, a one-time purchase, or with a monthly or annual StackForge Play Pass.
FAQ
What is a twin clue?
A raspberry number drawn across two latched rows. It counts one filled shape that touches both rows, joined edge to edge. Every other number in those rows is an ordinary run.
Do you ever have to guess?
No. Every board, twin clues included, is checked to have one solution that logic alone reaches.
Is Twinlatch a nonogram?
It starts from the same row-and-column clues, then adds twin clues, which change how a board is read. That rule is what makes Twinlatch its own game.
When does the Daily reset?
At 00:00 UTC. Everyone gets the same puzzle and one ranked attempt, with no account needed.
What happened to Latchward?
Twinlatch is Latchward, redesigned around twin clues, with a new board, icon and name.