What is Same Game?
Same game is a block-clearing puzzle. The board starts full of colored squares, and you remove them in groups of two or more matching blocks that touch. The blocks above fall into the gap, empty columns close up, and the board slowly shrinks. Clear every block and you win; leave only single blocks behind and you lose.
It looks like a quick clicking game, but the best scores come from planning. Play same game online free here, from a small 5×5 warm-up to a big 20×15 board.
Where SameGame comes from
The game was first released as Chain Shot! in 1985, made by Kuniaki Moribe. It spread to many computers under the name SameGame, and that name stuck. Many later “pop the blocks” games use the same idea of removing matching groups and letting gravity do the rest.
How to play here
Choose a board size on the start card, then press Play. Click or tap a group of two or more matching blocks to select it, and click it again to remove it. To cancel a selection with a mouse, right-click the group; on a phone, turn on Mark in the dock and tap it. Undo and Redo are in the dock, so you can try a move, see how the blocks fall, and take it back. New puzzle deals a fresh board, and Restart in the pause menu replays the same one.
How scoring changes your strategy
Points follow the formula (n − 2)², so size matters far more than the number of clicks:
- 2 blocks: 0 points
- 4 blocks: 4 points
- 6 blocks: 16 points
- 10 blocks: 64 points
- 15 blocks: 169 points
Removing a group of 10 in one go earns 64 points, while removing the same blocks as five pairs earns nothing. That’s why good players spend the early game joining groups together instead of clearing whatever is nearest.
A step-by-step way to play
- Clear from the bottom up with care. Every removal drops what is above. Ask what will fall where before you click.
- Join, then remove. Take out small groups of other colors that sit between two patches of the same color, so the patches merge.
- Keep columns alive. An empty column pulls everything on its right to the left, which can split groups you were building.
- Finish clean. Near the end, count the blocks of each color. A color with a single block left can’t be cleared, so fix it while you still can.
Why play Same Game?
Same game is relaxing to play and easy to understand, but there is always a better score to chase. Each board is a small planning puzzle that takes a few minutes. For more color matching, try Tile Match or Ball Sort.
How to play Same Game
- The board is full of colored blocks. Two or more blocks of the same color touching side by side form a group.
- Select a group, then click it again to remove it. Single blocks can't be removed on their own.
- Blocks above a gap fall down. When a whole column empties, the columns to its right slide left to close it.
- A group of n blocks scores (n − 2)² points: a pair scores nothing, a group of 5 scores 9, and a group of 10 scores 64.
- You win by clearing the whole board. If only single blocks are left, the game is over.
Same Game tips
Grow your groups before you click
Removing one group drops the blocks above it. Often that joins two smaller groups of another color into one big one, which scores far more.
Save one color for last
Pick a color and try not to break it up. As the board empties, its blocks drift together into one large group you can clear at the end.
Watch the lonely blocks
A single block surrounded by other colors can only be saved if something around it disappears. Clear the groups next to it before they scatter.
Frequently asked questions
How does scoring work in Same Game?
Each group you remove scores (n − 2)² points, where n is the number of blocks. Two blocks score 0, three score 1, four score 4, and the points climb fast after that. One big group is worth much more than several small ones.
Is every SameGame board solvable?
The boards here are generated so that at least one way to clear them exists. That doesn't mean every line of play works, so think before you click and use Undo when you get stuck.
Who invented Same Game?
SameGame began as Chain Shot!, a game created by Kuniaki Moribe in 1985. It was later copied to many computers under names like SameGame, and the idea lives on in many modern block-clearing games.
