Tango rules
Tango is a logic puzzle where you place suns and moons on a grid. The rules read in a minute and apply to every size, from 6x6 to 10x10.
Tango in 60 seconds
The grid fills with two symbols, a sun and a moon. Your mission: give every row and every column exactly half of each symbol, never lining up three suns or three moons in a row. Some neighboring cells carry a small sign, = or ×, that forces a relation between them. A single arrangement satisfies all these rules at once, and that is the one you are looking for. No luck involved: everything is deduced.
The rules in detail
Three constraints govern every grid, plus one guarantee: half of each symbol per row and column, never three in a row, the = and × clues to respect, and always a unique solution.
Half suns, half moons
Count the length of a row: half must end up as suns, the other half as moons. On an illustrative 4x4 grid, that means two suns and two moons per row and per column, exactly like on a real 6x6, 8x8 or 10x10 grid.
Never three symbols in a row
Two suns or two moons can touch, never three. The rule applies both ways, horizontal and vertical. It is the constraint that trips up beginners the most, because it applies even when the row count still looks fine.
The = and × clues
An = sign between two neighboring cells means "same symbol on both sides". A × sign means "opposite symbol". As soon as one side is known, the other is deduced immediately, without even looking at the rest of the row.
A single guaranteed solution
Every grid starts from a handful of pre-filled, locked cells and completes through a single chain of deductions. There is never two different ways to finish a grid: if you are stuck, a deduction remains to be found, not an arbitrary choice to make.
Strategies to start well
You never start a grid at random. The right reflex is to look for two identical symbols already next to each other, because they immediately force the following cell.
Look for the placed pair
Spot two neighboring cells already filled with the same symbol. The cell right after cannot carry that same symbol, on pain of a triple: it therefore takes the other one. This first free move often unlocks a whole row.
- Handle first the rows and columns already close to their quota for one symbol: the remaining cells resolve in one go.
- After each cell placed, check right away the = and × clues touching it: they often propagate a deduction to a still-empty neighboring cell.
- Count regularly: if only one possible combination remains to finish a row or column, place it without hesitation.
Beginner mistakes
Forgetting the vertical rule
The most common error: watching for three in a row only horizontally. The rule applies just as much down a column, and many hidden triples form there without being noticed.
Ignoring the = and × clues
Some players solve only by counting and forget the small signs between cells. Yet these clues are a full deduction source of their own, sometimes the only one available at the start of a grid.
Guessing instead of deducing
Every grid has a single solution reachable by logic. Placing a symbol on a hunch quickly leads to a contradiction. If you are stuck, recount the affected row and column before trying again.
Controls and grid sizes
You play with a finger or a mouse. Tap an empty cell to place a sun there. Tap it again to turn it into a moon. A final tap clears the cell and resets it. Pre-filled cells are locked: you cannot tap them, they are the starting point of the grid.
The rules stay identical whatever the size. A 6x6 grid needs three suns and three moons per row, and it is also the daily format of LinkedIn Tango. An 8x8 grid needs four of each, a 10x10 needs five. The larger the grid, the longer the deduction chains run. Start with the 6x6 to lock in the reflexes, then move up in size once the forced pair jumps out at you effortlessly.
Frequently asked questions
Can a row have three symbols total without three in a row?
Yes. Three suns can appear anywhere in a row as long as none of them sit three in a direct row, for example sun, moon, sun, sun is fine, but sun, sun, sun never is.
How many suns and moons go on the grid?
Exactly half of each per row and per column. An 8x8 grid takes four suns and four moons in every row and every column; a 10x10 grid takes five of each.
Is there always a single solution?
Yes. Every grid we generate is checked by a solver and kept only if it has exactly one solution, so the puzzle is always solvable by logic without guessing.
Do all grids have = and × clues?
Most do, but not always the same number. The clues sit between two neighboring cells and are entirely optional extra information: a grid can in theory be solved with counting and the three-in-a-row rule alone, the clues simply make some deductions faster.