AWAI (The Space Between)

AWAI is a placement puzzle with a story. Rain has washed the marker stones out of the little garden where KIRI and friends meet. Each friend remembers a different part of it, and you put the small and large stones back so that every account fits.

KUNOICHI knows how many stones are in each column (and sometimes each row), GARA can hear the weight of each row, KIRI remembers what was in one or two squares, and MAME's record shows how many stones sit inside a box. Puzzles are generated so that exactly one placement fits, and leaving out any one friend's account would allow more than one. Across 6 chapters the garden grows from 2×2 to 5×5, and the last 5 puzzles are a time attack.

How to play

1. Enter a username and choose AWAI
2. Read the conversation, or tap Skip
3. Tap a friend to hear what they saw. It stays on the board, so you don't have to remember it
4. Tap a square to cycle empty → small stone → large stone. Bushes can't hold a stone
5. When every account fits, press Check. 3 wrong checks in total end the run

Difficulty

The garden grows from 2×2 to 4×4 through chapter 5 and to 5×5 for the time attack. From puzzle 3 some rows or columns are left as “?”, so you have to work them out from the totals. Every puzzle was checked by a separate brute-force program: the answer fits every clue, exactly one placement fits, and every friend's account is needed.

Tips

• Start with KIRI's squares: they are fixed facts that cut down the possibilities
• A row weight of 3 means small + large or three small. Compare it with KUNOICHI's counts
• Use “?” lines last: total stones minus the known lines often tells you the missing count
• MAME's box tells you how many, not where. Combine it with a column count
• Up to puzzle 20 time doesn't count, so take as long as you need

What AWAI asks of you

In AWAI you combine several accounts and settle on the one placement that fits them all. KUNOICHI's column counts, GARA's row weights, KIRI's square and MAME's box each tell only part of the story.

Puzzles are generated so that exactly one placement fits every account, and leaving out any one friend would allow more than one. No single account is enough, so you have to set them against each other.

We checked the answers with a separate brute-force program, independent of the game itself. It lists every possible placement and counts again: across 5,000 puzzles (25 × 200), every answer fits the clues, exactly one placement fits, and every friend's account is needed.

Common mistakes

Mixing up weight and count. GARA counts a small stone as 1 and a large one as 2; KUNOICHI counts each stone as 1. A row that weighs 3 with 2 stones must be small + large.

Leaving the “?” lines too long. An unknown line can often be worked out: total stones minus the lines you know.

Reading MAME's box as a location. The box only says how many stones are inside. Which squares comes from combining it with column counts or KIRI's squares.

Rushing the time attack. From puzzle 21 faster solves earn a bonus, but you still only get 3 wrong checks in total.

Before you play

The whole screen never flashes.

All 25 puzzles can take about 30 minutes. Up to puzzle 20 thinking time doesn't affect your score, so feel free to pause (closing the page starts over).

Your score is a score in this game. It does not measure intelligence or memory, and we do not claim that playing makes you smarter.

FAQ

Q. Is AWAI free?

A. Yes. It is free, needs no signup and runs in your phone or desktop browser.

Q. Does every puzzle have one answer?

A. Yes. Each puzzle is generated so that exactly one placement fits all the accounts, and we checked 5,000 puzzles with a separate program.

Q. How is the score decided?

A. 800 per puzzle, up to 200 for accuracy (50 less for each wrong check on that puzzle), and in puzzles 21–25 up to 500 for speed.

Q. Does it train your brain?

A. AWAI is a logic puzzle game, not a training program. We do not claim that playing improves your brain or memory.

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