Math Gates: Build the Machine, Not the Worksheet
A puzzle game where you build the machine instead of solving the worksheet. Place gates and mirrors, press Run, and watch a number change on its way to the port.
What is Math Gates?
A bit carrying a number leaves the source and travels in a straight line. You place gates and mirrors on the board, then press Run. A gate changes the number. A mirror bends the path 90 degrees. The port at the end only accepts the value it asks for.
Because the bit only goes straight, the order it meets the gates is decided by where you put them. Want to add before you double? Then bend the path with a mirror and send it the other way. Function composition, and the fact that order changes the answer, turn into a layout problem you can see.
Every time you place a piece, the path it would take is drawn on the board, so you read before you place instead of guessing. No timers, no lives, and nothing lost for trying again.
Screenshots
iPhone
iPad
What's Inside
140 Puzzles in 7 Worlds
Each world is built around one idea, and the best solution to every puzzle in it actually uses that idea.
- Adding and subtracting
- Multiplying, dividing, and why order changes the answer
- Remainders, odd and even
- Negative numbers and flipping signs
- Fractions and reciprocals
- Squares and square roots
- True, false, and logic gates
Fewer Gates, More Stars
The tray always holds one more gate than you need. Reaching the port earns a star. Reaching it with the fewest gates earns three. The minimum is only revealed after you clear, so there is always a shorter machine to go back for.
28 Discoveries to Collect
Nothing is explained up front. You try, you watch, you notice. When you clear a puzzle, a card names what you just did and shows the formula behind it: order matters, two flips bring you back, doubling always gives an even number. The cards collect in a codex you can reread any time.
Tap, Choose, Run
There are no modes to switch. Tap an empty cell and pick a gate or a mirror. Tap a placed piece to swap it or take it away. If you get stuck, a hint places the next piece of the best solution for you, one at a time.
Four Shades of Green
Drawn like a handheld from 1989. Since color cannot carry meaning with four shades, pieces are told apart by shape and pattern instead. The board is numbers and symbols, and the discovery formulas are the same in every language. The app itself comes in 22 languages.
Free and Remove Ads
Free
- โAll 140 puzzles in all seven worlds
- โStars, discovery cards and the codex
- โAds between clears, never during play
- โHints by watching a short ad
Remove Ads
- โEverything in Free
- โNo ads
- โHints with no ad to watch
- โA one-time purchase, no subscription
Please check the in-app purchase screen for current pricing.
Build Your First Machine
Made for ages 8 and up, and for any adult who likes a quiet puzzle. The first three puzzles teach you how to play as you go.
Download on the App Store