How to play Roboku

Roboku takes a couple of minutes to learn. This page collects every rule and control. The app also includes a guided tutorial that walks you through your first case.

The goal

Each level is a theft case. You get a map, a group of characters (between five and eleven) and a stolen item. Your job is to work out which cell each character and the item are in. The thief is the character who is in the same section as the item. You beat the level once the thief and the item are in their correct places. The other characters help you get there, but they don't all need to be placed correctly to validate.

At the start, a short story sets the scene: where the theft happened, what went missing and where it was last seen. That's flavor: everything you need to solve the case is always in the clues.

The map

The map is a grid of 6×6 to 12×12 cells, although not every cell has to be in use: the building can have an irregular shape. Cells are grouped into sections (rooms) separated by thick walls, each with its own name, color and floor. The map may also contain:

Furniture, such as plants, seats, tables, shelves and screens. Some of these block the cell (no one can stand on a table, for instance) and some don't. They are used as reference points in clues like “She's next to a plant”.
Windows on the outer walls, which also appear in clues.

Rows are numbered from top to bottom (1, 2, 3…) and columns are labeled with letters from left to right (A, B, C…), just like a spreadsheet.

The three board rules

On top of the clues, every solution always follows these rules:

Row rule: two pieces (characters or the item) never share a row.
Column rule: two pieces never share a column.
Section rule: every character is in a different section. The item shares its section with exactly one character: the thief.

The row and column rule is universal: it applies between any two characters and between a character and the item. It's the most powerful tool you have, because every piece you place instantly rules out a whole row and a whole column for everyone else.

Ana (A) is confirmed in the second row and the second column. No other piece can share that row or column, so every one of those cells is ruled out.

The characters' clues

Every character, and the item too, has a personal clue that describes where they are: which section they are or aren't in, which object they're next to, how many rows they are from a room, whether they're in a corner… Some clues combine two facts. Sometimes there's also a general clue about the whole group, such as “No one is in the Reception.” You can look up the precise meaning of each one on the clue types page.

Clues are always true, and together with the three rules they allow exactly one solution. You never need to guess.

Controls

Action	Desktop	Phone
Select a character or the item	Click their card	Tap their card
Place (confirmed location)	Left-click the cell	With the card selected, tap the cell
Mark a possible location	Right-click the cell	Tap the card again to switch to “possible” mode, then tap the cell
Move a piece	Repeat the action on another cell: each character has only one confirmed location
Remove a piece	Repeat the action on the cell where it already is

A confirmed location shows as a large square with the character's color and initial. Possible locations are small balls, and a cell can hold several of them: use them as notes, like the small pencil marks in a Sudoku. If a placement breaks a rule (two pieces in the same row, for example), the game highlights the conflict in red so you see it straight away. On a phone, the character list and the map take turns: swipe up to move to the map and down to go back to the clues.

Validating and finishing a level

Once the thief and the item are in place, press Validate. If everything is correct, the level is marked as completed, confetti included, and you can move on to the next one. If not, the game tells you and you can keep investigating. Your game is saved automatically after every move, so you can leave a level halfway and come back to it later.

The Hint button

If you get stuck, the Hint button makes a single correction each time: first it fixes a misplaced character; if there are none, it places the next missing character; and finally, the item. Use it sparingly: the real joy of Roboku is finding the deduction yourself.

Game modes

Levels: over a hundred numbered cases, from one to five stars of difficulty. They're independent and can be played in any order.
Daily challenge: a different case for each day, on a calendar where you can catch up on earlier days.
Time trial: unlocked once you complete any level above 40. You have 15 minutes to solve as many three- to five-star cases as you can, with no Hint button.

Ready for your first case? Play now in your browser or read on with the strategy guide.