ONLY ONCE

In this free “reverse memory game,” the goal is to touch each emoji tile exactly one time, keeping in your memory the ones already found. The grid enlarges every other level, from 2×2 up to 12×12.

New emoji are continually added to the mix, and it’s a scavenger hunt to find them! There’s no time pressure, so take as long as you like.

Each mistake—re-touching a tile you’ve already touched—carries an increasing penalty that reduces your maximum possible score. A perfect game: touch 180 tiles—only once!—for 180 points.

Your skill is likely to improve rapidly with repeated plays!

Thanks for playing my game! If you enjoy it, consider supporting it with a small donation.

DETAILS

For mobile and desktop. Web browser with early-2022 emoji support required. (Developed and tested primarily for Safari.) There is no audio. Feedback and bug reports welcomed! Reach me at adamsimmersive.com.

Each time you advance to a new level size, the grid draws randomly from all the tiles you have previously seen in the current game. The 3×3 levels shuffle in 3 new emoji to find, the 4×4 levels shuffle in 4 new emoji, etc.

You play each level size twice, and the second time only draws from the tiles you saw the first time. After you play the last size (12×12 with 12 new emoji) twice, the game ends with one final “boss round”: 12×12 again, with 24 new emoji to find.

Your first mistake costs you 1 point, the second costs 2 points, the third 3 points, etc.

Mistakes never take away points you have already earned, but they reduce the maximum possible score. Your current score rises with your successes, while the maximum reduces with your mistakes. When the two meet, the game is over!

If you play multiple games in a row, there is the added challenge of remembering which emoji you saw in the current game. To help with that, the tile style and color palette is randomized every time you play, then remains consistent until that game ends.

You will see 180 different emoji each time you play, if you make it to the end. These are drawn randomly from a hand-selected pool of 625 emoji, which I selected to be visually distinct and memorable.