Letterstorm

Trace paths through touching letters to spell words — each find drains those tiles, the board collapses and refills, and you race a shrinking grid against the clock.

How to play

A 4x4 grid is filled with letters. Drag through, or tap in sequence, a chain of neighbouring tiles to spell a word of three or more letters, then submit it. Every valid word removes its tiles from the board — the survivors fall and the gaps refill from a finite pool. Once that pool runs dry the gaps stay empty, so the grid you are hunting through keeps shrinking. Score as much as you can before time runs out.

• Words must be at least three letters and run through cells that touch, including diagonally.
• The 'Qu' tile counts as the two letters Q and U in one square.
• Finding a word drains those tiles; the board settles and refills only while the pool lasts.
• Longer words score more, and you cannot claim the same word twice.
• A round ends when the timer hits zero, or early if you drain every tile off the board.

Game modes

• Timed: a three-minute round that starts on your first word.
• Zen: no clock, play until the board empties or you stop.
• Daily: one shared board each day, plus endless practice shuffles.

Controls

• Desktop: drag across letters to trace a word, or click them one at a time, then press Submit or Enter; Escape or Backspace clears your path.
• Phone & tablet: drag a finger across adjacent tiles and lift to submit, or tap tiles in order and use the Submit button.

Tips & strategy

• Cash long words for big points, but short words are great for reshaping the board into better letter clusters.
• Drain tiles you do not need so fresh letters fall in from the pool while it still has cards.
• Watch the pool counter — late in a round the board only gets smaller, so plan your last words early.
• Keep an eye on the 'Qu' tile; it unlocks Q-words you could not otherwise spell.

About Letterstorm

Letterstorm is an original word-tracing and word-search game with a collapsing, draining board that no other grid game plays quite like. It is free in the browser with timed and zen modes and a daily challenge — no download or sign-up needed.

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