Games like SET
The classic three-card pattern game rests on two ideas: cards that differ in a few features, and a rule that asks whether each feature is all the same or all different. If that idea clicks for you, these games build on the same instincts.
Play the same idea online, free
Threezy is an independent, free puzzle in the spirit of the classic card game. Nine cards, three features (shape, colour, fill), and the same all-same-or-all-different rule. It runs in any browser with no signup:
- A daily puzzle with one shared board for everyone, like Wordle, plus Daily 10: find ten sets as fast as you can.
- 2-minute sprints, Race 10 on random boards, and an endless untimed mode for practice.
- The full 81-card deck with a fourth feature, number, for the hard version.
- A skill rating, global and national leaderboards, and over 100 achievements.
Other games built on the same instincts
Quarto
What it shares: The closest relative. Sixteen pieces, each with four two-way features (tall or short, light or dark, round or square, hollow or solid). You win by completing a line of four pieces that share at least one feature.
How it differs: Turn-based and strategic rather than a speed race, and your opponent chooses the piece you have to place.
Spot It! (Dobble)
What it shares: Pure speed spotting. Any two cards share exactly one symbol, and the first to call it out wins the card.
How it differs: You look for one identical symbol, not a rule across three cards, so it is easier to learn and great with kids.
Blink
What it shares: Cards differ by colour, shape and count, the same kind of features. You race to play cards that match the top card on any one of them.
How it differs: Matching one feature at a time instead of checking all of them, and it is head-to-head.
Ghost Blitz
What it shares: A card shows objects in colours, and you must grab the right piece: the one shown in its true colour, or the one that shares nothing with the card.
How it differs: Physical grabbing and a trick rule rather than finding a combination.
Mastermind
What it shares: Deduction over colours and positions: you narrow down a hidden code from feedback on each guess.
How it differs: Slow, careful logic instead of visual speed. A good fit if you enjoy the reasoning side more than the race.
Daily word and logic puzzles
What it shares: If part of the appeal is one shared puzzle a day and comparing results with friends, grouping puzzles such as Connections scratch a similar itch: sort items by a hidden shared property.
How it differs: Words and trivia rather than shapes, and no clock.
What makes this kind of game work
The best pattern games keep the rule tiny and the search large. You learn the rule in a minute, and after that every round is about seeing: holding a few features in mind at once, and noticing the one combination that fits. That is why they suit both quick daily play and long practice, and why speed keeps improving long after the rule stops being the hard part.
More from Threezy
- How to play: the rule in one minute, with worked examples
- Today's daily puzzle: one shared board for everyone
- Practice: untimed play, sprints and benchmarks
- The 81-card deck: the full version with four features
- Daily archive: past boards and winners
Threezy is an independent puzzle and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Set Enterprises, Inc. or PlayMonster. SET is a trademark of its respective owner and is mentioned only to describe the style of puzzle.