How to play a sliding picture puzzle
The aim is to put the picture back together by moving tiles into the empty space. Pocket Picture has a complete square image and an extra parking slot above the upper-left corner. Unlike a traditional numbered 15 puzzle, the finished picture has no missing square.
- Choose a picture. Try Apple or Grand Canyon for a 4×4 starting board.
- Press Shuffle. The game scrambles the board using legal moves, so the resulting puzzle can be solved.
- Slide into the gap. Tap or drag a neighboring tile. Tiles move horizontally or vertically, not diagonally. Focus the board and use arrow keys to move an adjacent tile in that direction.
- Check the picture. Tap the miniature print on the board for a zoomable reference.
- Rebuild the image. Return the picture tiles to their places, leaving the empty space in the parking slot above the board.
Tips for a first puzzle
Start by identifying corners, strong outlines and changes in color. Compare small groups of tiles with the reference image. Work on a recognizable section, and watch how moving the gap around it changes the surrounding pieces. Sometimes you need to move a correctly placed tile temporarily to make room for another.
A 4×4 board has fewer pieces to track than an 8×8 board. Increase the size when you want a longer challenge; a larger grid is optional. These are picture puzzles, so matching the artwork matters as much as recognizing tile positions.
What does the extra slot do?
The tile at the top-left of the square can slide up into the parking slot when it is empty. That leaves a gap inside the picture so other tiles can move. The extra space lets the solved image retain all its tiles.
Can I pause or reset?
There is no countdown. Progress is saved locally on this device. Use All puzzles to return to the gallery. Shuffle starts another scramble; Restore complete picture in Settings returns the image to its solved arrangement. Browser storage is not an account backup.