Genius Lab

How to play

Fill cells so every row and column matches its number clues (a nonogram). A Fill/X toggle marks cells that must stay empty. When every picture cell is filled the image appears in colour and is named (“Solved. It’s a heart.”).

What it teaches

Deduction from number clues. 27 pictures across five grid sizes; each new size comes with a spoken tip such as “Start with the biggest numbers.”

Winning and stars

A wrong cell is crossed out automatically (“Not part of the picture.”) and counts as a mistake: none earns three stars. On levels 1–4 the game crosses out leftovers once a line is complete.

The 13 levels

• 1–35×5 grids (leftover cells crossed out for you on levels 1–4)
• 4–66×6 grids; from level 5 you mark empty cells yourself
• 7–87×7 grids
• 9–118×8 grids
• 12–1310×10 grids

How to play

A balance scale shows the equation: mystery crates are x, weights are units and balloons are −1. Tap an operation or drag a weight off one pan and the same move happens on both sides, with the live equation shown below. Once x is alone, pick its value.

What it teaches

Solving linear equations by doing the same thing to both sides — from x + a = b to brackets, fractions and word problems.

Winning and stars

Mistakes are impossible moves (the scale wobbles and a line explains why), wrong answers and wrong equations; none earns three stars.

The 12 levels

1. x + a = b
2. x − a = b
3. 2x = b
4. ax = b
5. ax + b = c
6. x on both sides
7. Negative answers
8. Brackets
9. Fractions
10. Two-step mix
11. Word problems: pick the equation, then solve
12. Mixed challenge

How to play

Rounds are mostly eight questions with four choices; a wrong choice fades and the player tries again. After each answer a world map lights up the continent, pins the capital and unlocks a fun fact, and a streak meter counts answers in a row.

What it teaches

The flags, capitals and continents of 61 countries, through six question types: flag to country, country to flag, country to capital, capital to country, sorting flags by continent, and true-or-false facts.

Winning and stars

Mistakes count across the round: none earns three stars (“Flawless!”).

The 12 levels

1. Famous flags
2. Europe
3. Asia
4. The Americas
5. Africa and Oceania
6. Capitals
7. Continents
8. Lookalikes (Nordic crosses and friends)
9. Capitals pro
10. Reverse
11. Fact check
12. Master mix

How to play

Drag across letters to find the listed words; the selection snaps to eight directions. Found words get their own colour and are crossed off. Thirteen themes rotate at random — animals, space, science, sports, countries, food, music, ocean, weather, human body, coding, emotions and nature.

What it teaches

Vocabulary (ALGORITHM, NEUTRON, GRATEFUL, MONSOON…) and systematic visual scanning.

Winning and stars

A drag over three or more letters that isn’t a listed word is a mistake. This game is the most forgiving: up to one mistake still earns three stars.

The 12 levels

• 1–38×8 to 9×9 grids, 5–6 words, across and down only
• 4–69×9 to 10×10 grids, 7–8 words, diagonals added
• 710×10, 8 words, some backwards
• 8–1211×11 to 12×12 grids, 9–12 words in any direction

How to play

Drag the seven classic tangram pieces onto a glowing silhouette. Tapping a piece turns it 45°, and a mirror button flips the parallelogram. A piece snaps in when both its position and angle match.

What it teaches

Spatial reasoning, rotation and reflection, across 15 silhouettes — a house, rocket, cat, swan, runner and more.

Winning and stars

Dropping a piece in the right spot at the wrong angle is a mistake, and the voice explains (“Right spot. Rotate it.”); dropping it off the shape isn’t.

The 12 levels

• 1–3Faint outlines; pieces start the right way round
• 4–5Outlines; pieces start turned
• 6No guide lines
• 7+The parallelogram may need flipping
• 10The hardest: square, triangle and rectangle
• 12Master mode: any shape

How to play

Tap wire tiles to rotate them, drag missing pieces into gaps and flip switches until a closed loop runs from + to −. A live simulation lights bulbs, spins a fan and sounds a buzzer. On logic levels, tap the inputs on a gate diagram with a truth table to make the output 1.

What it teaches

Closed and open circuits, switches, series and parallel circuits (and why series bulbs glow dimmer), short circuits, motors and buzzers, and logic gates: AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, XOR and XNOR.

Winning and stars

Mistakes include turning a correct wire out of place and picking an unsafe circuit; a short circuit sparks and is explained.

The 12 levels

1. Rotate into a loop
2. Missing wire
3. Add a switch
4. Series bulbs
5. Parallel paths
6. Spot the safe circuit
7. Motor and buzzer
8. AND
9. OR
10. NOT logic
11. XOR logic
12. Big mixed board

How to play

Number orbs float up and hover while a challenge shows at the top (“Slice 12 × 8”). The player swipes through the right orbs and a combo builds; ten correct slices finish the round.

What it teaches

Mental maths: making 100, times tables to 12, division facts, multiples, primes, squares and roots, percentages, negative numbers and fraction–decimal–percentage equivalents.

Winning and stars

A wrong slice is explained (“21 is 3 × 7.”) and resets the combo. There is no fail timer: orbs that drift away simply come back (“They got away. Here they come again.”) and missed orbs never count against the player.

The 12 levels

1. Add and subtract within 100, make 100
2. Times tables 2–5
3. Times tables 6–9
4. 11s and 12s
5. Division facts
6. Multiples
7. Primes
8. Squares and square roots
9. Percentages
10. Negative numbers
11. Fractions, decimals, percentages
12. Speed round

How to play

Slide tiles back into order by tapping a tile next to the gap, or any tile in line with it to slide a whole row. Picture levels show a drawn landscape with an animal.

What it teaches

Planning ahead and sequencing; the game’s own advice is “finish the top row first”.

Winning and stars

Stars depend only on the number of moves; there are no mistakes. Every shuffle is solvable, and a best score is saved for each level.

The 12 levels

1. 3×3 numbers
2. 3×3 numbers
3. 3×3 picture
4. 3×3 picture, full scramble
5. 4×4 numbers
6. 4×4 numbers
7. 4×4 picture
8. 4×4 picture
9. 5×5 numbers
10. 5×5 picture
11. 5×5 numbers
12. 5×5 picture, full scramble

How to play

Mastermind in front of a vault. Fill a row with coloured pegs and press Check: a lime pin means right colour, right spot; an amber pin means right colour, wrong spot. Eight guesses, an undo button, and the vault swings open when the code is cracked.

What it teaches

Logical deduction — using clues to rule options out. Each peg also carries a faint shape symbol to help colour-blind players.

Winning and stars

Stars depend on guesses used against a par of 4–7. If all eight run out, the code is revealed, the player earns one star and stays on the level to try again.

The 12 levels

1. 3 pegs, 4 colours
2. 3 pegs, 5 colours
3. 4 pegs, 5 colours
4. 4 pegs, 6 colours
5. 4 pegs, 6 colours
6. 4 pegs, 6 colours, repeats allowed
7. 4 pegs, 7 colours, repeats
8. 5 pegs, 6 colours
9. 5 pegs, 7 colours
10. 5 pegs, 8 colours
11. 5 pegs, 7 colours, repeats
12. Master vault: 5 pegs, 8 colours, repeats