About Shape Snap
Shape Snap is a speed-matching game for two. A target appears, both players scan their own cards, and the first to find the match scores.
How a match works
There are six shapes, a circle, square, triangle, diamond, star and heart, and four colours. The target in the middle is one particular combination, such as a blue star.
Each player has six cards laid out in two rows of three. One of them is the target. The other five are near misses: perhaps a blue square, a red star, a green heart. The two players have different sets of wrong cards in different positions, so there is no advantage in peeking.
Tap the match first and you take the point. Tap a wrong card and your cards are locked for just over a second. First to five wins.
Sitting and setting up
Lay a phone or tablet flat between you. The target is drawn twice, once for each player. On a computer, the keys map onto the two rows of cards: Q, W, E and A, S, D for player one, and I, O, P and J, K, L for player two.
How to win
Search by one feature first. Decide whether you find it quicker to look for the colour or the shape, then use the other to confirm. Most people find colour faster.
Beware the half-matches. A card with the right colour and the wrong shape is the commonest mistake. Check both before you tap.
Look at the middle first, then at your cards. Glancing back and forth wastes time. Take in the target properly, once.
Keep your hand over the centre of your six cards so that none is far away.
Accuracy beats haste. A wrong tap costs you the round more often than being a little slow.
It is quick and noisy, and among two-player HTML5 games it is one that small children can win against adults.