Arrow Atlas

Tap, shoot, reveal

1. Look before you tapEvery arrow slides the way it points. If the cells between its tip and the edge are empty, tapping it shoots it off the board. If another arrow sits in that path, the tap fails and you lose one of your four hearts. The blocker flashes red so you learn from it.
2. Peel the board from the outside inArrows near the edge are usually free first. Clearing them opens lanes for the ones behind. There is always at least one free arrow, so if you cannot see it, press Hint: it lights one up for five seconds on the clock.
3. Name the countryAs the board empties, the country's real outline fades in underneath. Clear the last arrow, pick its name from three options, and the level card shows the capital, population and region. Then on to the next stop of the tour.

70 countries, five tiers

The tour starts with shapes almost everyone knows, Italy, India, Australia, Brazil, Bangladesh, Japan, and works through the world's largest countries before finishing with Iceland. Early boards have about 90 cells and short arrows; the last tier packs 600 cells with arrows that snake up to eight cells long. Every outline is the real country from Natural Earth, drawn on an equal-area projection, so sizes are honest.

Classic mode counts up, for chasing best times. Rush mode gives you 90 seconds a board, for when you want your hands to shake. Both use the same four hearts, and both save stars and best times per level in your browser.

Geography that sneaks up on you

I make videos about geography, history, culture and economies, and I animate maps for other channels. Tap-away arrow puzzles are the most addictive casual genre on the app stores, but the shapes underneath them are butterflies and trophies. Swapping those for real countries costs the player nothing, and after a few boards they can pick Mozambique out of a line-up without ever having tried to learn it.

If you prefer a slower, more deliberate way to learn the map, try my other game, Piece the World, a jigsaw of continents and countries.

Ariyan Khan

Geography, history and economy videos on YouTube. Freelance video editor and map animator. About me.