Which country is shaded?

How a round goes

Each of the ten questions shows a different country. Read the shape, the coastline and what lies around it, then choose one of the four names below the map. You can also answer with the keys 1 to 4 and move between the options with the arrow keys.

After your answer the right name is marked in green; a wrong choice turns red. When the answer was right the next question comes by itself, after a wrong one you decide when to go on, so there is time to look at the map.

Why Hard feels different

The level changes both the countries asked and the wrong options. On Easy the other names come from well-known countries far away, so the region alone often gives the answer. On Medium they come from the same continent. On Hard they are the nearest neighbours of the shaded country: you see Uruguay, and the options may well be Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil.

A hint strikes out two wrong names, and the question then counts half. Correct answers score 100 plus a speed bonus of up to 50.

Pencil notes

• Look at the sea first. Which coast the country touches often decides between two neighbours.
• Note how many borders touch the shaded shape. A country wedged in among four others is rarely the one sitting at the edge of the view.
• Learn the odd shapes: a long thin country, a country with a narrow corridor, a country split by the sea. They are the quickest points of a round.
• Afterwards play the same region in Pin the country. Naming a shape and placing a name train different halves of the same memory.