Sliding 24

Sliding 24 is a browser game built for short, satisfying sessions - it loads instantly, plays with one thumb, and runs on any mid-range phone. The setup is simple: a 5x5 board with 24 sliding tiles. Nothing to install, no account, no waiting.

Getting into Sliding 24

Tiles slide into the single empty square, one step at a time. The solve is a rhythm of small loops - rotate a tile into the gap, shuffle the row, lock it, move on. With a 5x5 board with 24 sliding tiles, early rows can be solved almost without thinking; the last row is where runs are won.

Why Sliding 24 sticks

It suits anyone with a queue to wait in or a kettle to watch: students between classes, commuters, parents stealing ten quiet minutes. There is no meta-progression to lose and nothing to catch up on - a week away costs you nothing but a little sharpness.

How to play

1. Press play - the board shuffles with a 5x5 board with 24 sliding tiles.
2. Tap a tile next to the empty square to slide it in.
3. Work the top row and left column first to shrink the problem.
4. Finish with every tile in order - fewer moves is the whole game.

Where it sits

Slide the 24 tiles back into order on a 5x5 board.

A note on the sticker

Read Sliding 24 as a Teka Shelf game first and a Teka Shelf game second. The shape explains how the session will end; the group explains what it will ask of you before that.

It is rated 4.4 out of five in our notes, and the number is held up mostly by how quickly it can be restarted rather than by how clever it is.

Keep it if you play in short bursts. It rewards a second attempt far more than a first, and the second attempt costs nothing but the tap.