Preview
What is Hue Hatch?
Hue Hatch is a sliding block puzzle in your browser where you push paint blocks until each one leaves the board through a hatch of its own colour. A push sends a block as far as it can go, and a hatch only lets it out if it is at least as wide as the block, so blocks become brakes for each other. The 30 boards grow from three blocks on a 5×5 floor to nine blocks on 7×8 with easels and rail blocks, and there is no timer and no losing.
Key facts
- Genre
- Puzzle
- Players
- 1 (single player)
- Levels
- 30, in 4 chapters
- Three stars
- Clear it in par pushes or fewer
- Par
- 4 pushes on level 1, 19 at most
- Biggest board
- 7×8 squares, 9 blocks, 5 colours
- Session length
- 5–10 min
- Platform
- Web browser
- Devices
- Desktop, tablet, mobile
- Price
- Free
- Sign-up
- Not required
How do you play Hue Hatch?
Clear every paint block from the board. Drag a block, or pick it and press an arrow: it slides that way until another block, an easel or the rim stops it. At the rim it leaves only through a hatch of its own colour on that side that covers its whole width. A push that changes nothing is not counted, and Undo takes back any push. Clear the board in par pushes or fewer for three stars. Easels arrive on level 9, rail blocks that slide only along their stripe on level 17, and a fifth colour, purple, on level 25.
Tips & strategy
- Work backwards from the hatches: find the block whose own-colour hatch it can already reach in one push, and send that one first.
- A block that overshoots its hatch needs a stopper: park another block, or use an easel, one square past the lane it should stop in.
- Check hatch widths first: a 2-square bar cannot leave through a 1-square hatch, so aim for a side where the hatch is wide enough.
- Rail blocks have only two directions, so move the free blocks around them first and leave the rail block for when its lane is clear.
- Over par? Tap Undo instead of Restart: you keep the good pushes and only replay the one that wasted a move.
What are the controls in Hue Hatch?
| ACTION | INPUT |
|---|---|
| Push it that way | Drag a block |
| Pick it and push it | Tap a block, then an arrow |
| Push the block | Drag, or click then an arrow |
| Pick the previous or next block | [ and ] |
| Push the picked block | Arrow keys |
| Undo · hint | U or Z · H |
| Put the board back | Restart button · R |
| Pause the level | Pause button · P or Esc |
Plays with keyboard, mouse, and touch. Fullscreen works in desktop and mobile browsers.
Hue Hatch FAQ
Why did my block stop at the edge instead of leaving in Hue Hatch?
The hatch on that side is the wrong colour or too narrow. A block leaves only through a hatch of its own colour that covers its whole width on that side. A 3-square bar pushed at a 2-square hatch stops at the rim, so look for a wider hatch on another side.
How is par worked out for each Hue Hatch level?
Par is the fewest pushes that can clear the board, found by an exact search over every possible push. It is 4 on level 1 and rises to 19 on level 29. Matching par earns 3 stars, staying within par plus half of par earns 2, and any clear earns at least 1.
What do the striped blocks do in Hue Hatch?
They are rail blocks, and they slide only along their stripe: side to side or up and down. They first appear on level 17, with one to three per board. The arrows across the rail grey out when one is picked, so free the lane in front of it before you push.
Can you get stuck or lose a level in Hue Hatch?
No. There is no timer and no fail screen. Undo takes back any push, Restart puts the board back for free, and a push that moves nothing is not counted. If the board has no way out from where you are, the hint says so and suggests undoing.
Does using a hint cost stars in Hue Hatch?
No, hints are free. A hint solves the board from where you are and lights up the next push: the block glows, an arrow appears on it, and the matching pad arrow pulses. Stars depend only on how many pushes you used, so following hints all the way still reaches par.
How do the colour shapes help in Hue Hatch?
Each colour carries its own mark on both blocks and hatches: red a circle, yellow a triangle, blue a square, green a diamond and purple a star. Matching the shape works even if two colours look alike to you, which matters from level 25, where all five colours share the board.
What does Watch the best way show in Hue Hatch?
After you clear a board, it replays the shortest solution from the starting position, one push about every half second. It is the same par route the stars are measured against, so it shows exactly where you spent extra pushes. The win sheet comes back when the replay ends.
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