Family Tree Puzzle
Family Tree Puzzle
Family Tree Puzzle gives you an empty tree, a set of people, and a handful of statements about how they are related. Your job is to place everyone correctly.
It belongs to the same family as the grid logic puzzles printed in puzzle magazines, where the answer is fully determined by the clues and no guessing is required. If you find yourself guessing, you have missed something.
How to play Family Tree Puzzle
- Read every clue before placing anyone.
- Drag a person onto a position on the tree.
- Positions that contradict a clue are rejected or marked.
- Continue until every place is filled consistently.
Kinship words are precise
The clues use family words exactly, and the puzzle depends on you doing the same.
- A sibling shares parents. A cousin does not.
- Generation is what the tree is really made of, and words like uncle, aunt, niece and nephew fix generation before they fix anything else.
- In law relationships mark where two branches join, which is often the clue that unlocks the whole tree.
Tips and strategy
Fix generations first
Before worrying about who is who, work out which row each person is on. Most clues carry generation information even when they look like they are about something else, and once the rows are settled the number of possible arrangements collapses.
Use negative information
The clue that says who someone is not is worth as much as the clue that says who they are. Cross those possibilities off explicitly rather than holding them in your head, because a puzzle of this kind is usually solved by elimination rather than by deduction.
Working order
- Start with the clue that mentions the fewest people. It has the fewest interpretations.
- Then the clue that mentions someone you have already placed.
- Leave the vague ones until the end. By then they will only have one reading left.
When two arrangements both seem to fit
Go back through the clues and test each one against both. A properly built puzzle has exactly one solution, so one of the two must break a clue you read too quickly. In practice the misread is almost always a kinship word applied one generation out.
Habits
- Read all the clues before touching anything.
- Say each clue in the plainest possible words before using it.
- Do not place someone because they seem to fit. Place them because a clue requires it.
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Orientation
Built for a landscape screen. On a phone, turn the device sideways.
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Frequently asked questions
Do I need to guess in Family Tree Puzzle?
No. Every puzzle is fully determined by its clues, so if you are guessing you have missed a piece of information rather than reached a genuine fork.
What is the best way to start?
Work out which generation each person belongs to before deciding who is who. Fixing the rows removes most of the possible arrangements at once.
Are negative clues useful?
Very. A clue telling you who someone is not eliminates possibilities just as firmly as a positive one, and these puzzles are mostly solved by elimination.
Is it suitable for children?
Yes, and it is a clean way to teach the vocabulary of family relationships, since the puzzle uses each word in its exact sense.
Is Family Tree Puzzle free?
Yes, free in the browser with nothing to install.