Memory Match

What is Memory Match?

Memory, also known as Concentration or Pairs, is one of the first card games most of us ever learn. Lay the cards out face down, flip two, and if they match you keep them. If they don't, you flip them back and try to remember where they were. That's the whole game, and it's still a great workout for your short-term memory.

Memory Match uses a real deck of playing cards and a few twists on top of the classic. It's free, plays in the browser on a phone, tablet or computer, and there's no download.

How to play

1. Every board deals in face up for a moment. Study it. Bigger boards give you a little longer.
2. The cards flip face down. Tap any card to turn it over, then tap a second card.
3. If the two cards match, they're removed and you score points.
4. If they don't, they flip back after a moment. Remember what you saw.
5. Clear every pair to finish the board.

Two kinds of match

Each board tells you its rule in the banner at the start.

• Twins: match the exact same card. A 7 of hearts pairs only with the other 7 of hearts.
• Rank and color: match the same rank in the same color, like 7 of hearts with 7 of diamonds, or Queen of spades with Queen of clubs. A red 7 never matches a black 7.

Color boards are the tricky ones. Often both color pairs of a rank are on the same board, so you might see four 7s and have to sort red from black.

Scoring and streaks

Every match is worth 100 points. Matches in a row build a perfect streak, and each match in a streak adds 50 more, up to 600 a match. A miss resets the streak.

Peeks

Every 5 matches in a row earns a Peek. Use it and every card left on the board turns face up for a second or so. It's a lifesaver on a big color board when you've lost track of a corner.

Modes

Bloom Rush

A race against a 60 second clock. Each match adds 2 seconds (3 once your streak is 3 or more), and clearing a board adds 6 seconds plus 1 for every pair on it. Boards grow as you go: 6 pairs, then 8, 10, 12 and up to 15, and the later ones alternate between twins and color rules. Keep the streak alive and you can play a long time.

Daily

One 10-pair rank and color board, the same layout for everyone that day. On top of the normal points there's a speed bonus of up to 1,500, which drops by 15 for every second and 60 for every miss. Play it daily to keep your streak going, and compare on the leaderboard.

Garden

A level-by-level path with no clock. Boards get bigger every three levels (6 pairs at level 1 up to 15 pairs from level 13), and levels switch between twins and color rules, with color on every level past 15. Each level awards up to three stars: three for a clean clear (misses no more than 40 percent of the pairs), two if your misses are no more than the number of pairs, and one otherwise.

Controls (phone and computer)

On a phone or tablet, just tap cards to flip them and tap the eye button to use a Peek. On a computer you can click, or play with the keyboard:

The Greenhouse and card backs

Every pair you find, in any mode, helps your Greenhouse grow. There are 12 plants, starting with a Sprout at 10 pairs and Tulip at 30, all the way to the Lotus at 660, Cactus Bloom at 820 and the Grand Bouquet at 1,000 pairs.

Card backs come from milestones: your first board, your first perfect board, a streak of 8, garden level 5, 20 boards, 3 daily boards, 3 perfect boards, garden level 12, 50 boards, a streak of 15 and garden level 25. They're shared with every card game on our site, and you can turn on the four-color deck from the same screen if you'd like red and black suits easier to tell apart.

Tips and memory tricks

• Use the opening look well. Don't try to memorize the whole board. Lock in two or three pairs you can see clearly, then go for those first to start a streak.
• Say it in your head. "Red Queen, top left. Black 4, middle." Naming cards and places in words sticks better than trying to hold a picture.
• Work in rows. On a big board, flip new cards in order, row by row, instead of jumping around. It's much easier to remember a position when you know roughly where you've been.
• Flip an unknown card first. When you don't know any pairs yet, flip a card you haven't seen. If it matches something you remember, you've found a pair. If not, you've learned a new card and only spent one miss.
• On color boards, think color first. Spot the rank, then check red or black before you tap the partner. Most misses here are a red 8 picked for a black 8.
• Save Peeks for big boards. A Peek on a 6-pair board is mostly wasted. On a 15-pair color board it can save a whole streak.
• In Bloom Rush, accuracy is speed. A miss costs you the streak and the time bonus. Slowing down a touch usually ends with more boards cleared.

Looking for another calm card game? Try Hi-Lo Rocket or Go Fish.

Questions