How to Play Mahjong Solitaire: Rules, Free Tiles and Tips

By Nesim Razon, independent Android developer

Mahjong Solitaire is a relaxing one-player puzzle: you remove pairs of identical tiles until the whole board is empty. It is easy to learn, but a little planning makes the difference between a stuck board and a clean win. This guide covers the rules, the free-tile idea that confuses most beginners, and tips for Tilelings' three modes.

The goal

Clear every tile from the layout by matching pairs. A pair is two tiles with the same picture. Flowers match any other flower and seasons match any other season, even though their pictures differ.

What is a free tile?

You can only pick a tile that is free. A tile is free when both of these are true:

• nothing is stacked on top of it
• its left side or its right side is open (it does not have tiles touching on both sides)

Blocked tiles look slightly darker in Tilelings, so you can see at a glance what you can use. Tap one free tile, then tap its twin: the pair disappears and may free more tiles.

Tips for clearing the board

• Start with the tallest stacks and with tiles that sit on top of many others. Freeing buried tiles gives you more choices.
• Before you remove a pair, check whether you have a third or fourth identical tile. Take the pair that does not trap the others underneath.
• Work on the long rows from the ends toward the middle so you do not block yourself.
• If you are stuck, use Hint (it follows a real solution), Undo, or Shuffle. Every deal in Tilelings is guaranteed solvable.

Connect and Tile Match in Tilelings

Connect: link two identical tiles with a path that has at most two turns. The path may run outside the board. In many levels the tiles slide after each match, so the layout keeps changing.

Tile Match: tap tiles to put them in your rack of 7 slots. Three identical tiles clear together. If the rack fills up you lose the level, so plan which tiles you collect and use the set-aside slots when you need breathing room.