Printwise

How to play

Goal

Every level has a target picture on a small grid (4×4 to 6×6) and a tray of stencils. Each stencil has a shape (a piece made of a few cells) and one ink: red, yellow, blue or white. Print every stencil once to turn the blank sheet into a copy of the target.

Rules

Pick a stencil from the tray, tap the sheet cell where you want it, rotate it if you like, then press Print. The whole stencil must stay on the sheet. Every stencil is printed exactly once; you choose the order. When every stencil is printed and the sheet matches the target, the level is done.

How inks mix

Coloured inks are see-through and add to the colour underneath: red + yellow makes orange, yellow + blue makes green, red + blue makes purple, and all three make brown. Printing the same colour twice changes nothing. White ink is opaque: it covers everything in the cells it prints and makes them white. Ink printed on top of white reads pastel: red becomes pink, blue becomes sky blue, green becomes mint.

Strategy 1: Read the target first

Before printing, look at the target. Orange, green, purple or brown cells are where two or three inks overlap. Pastel cells are where white has to go underneath.

Strategy 2: Match the shapes

Look at the area each colour covers in the target and find the stencil that fits there. Some stencils only fit when turned; try Rotate.

Strategy 3: Plan the order

White wipes what is under it. For a pastel cell, print the white first and the colour after: white then red is pink, red then white stays white. If a corner would end up with a colour you do not want, a late white can cover it.

Strategy 4: Check for spill

If you print a wrong colour on a cell with no white base, only a later white can rescue it. Before pressing Print, look at the preview on the sheet: the cells under the stencil show the colour they will take.

Strategy 5: Use undo

Undo and restart are always free. In the app, if the current order can no longer reach the target, the game tells you so for free and suggests undoing. A hint picks the next stencil and lines it up for you; it costs one joker.

Why is every level solvable?

The first 5 tutorial prints are hand-made; the other 195 levels are generated. Before release, every level is solved by a computer solver and its solution is stored with the level. Difficulty rises gradually: the grid grows and the number of stencils and use of white ink change.