Mahjong Riddles: Egypt

Star Mill sets its tile puzzle in Ancient Egypt and gives the clearing a purpose beyond an empty board. Matching tiles and solving levels earns artifacts, and the artifacts uncover the secrets of the Giza valley, the Old city, the Desert and the Nile. The guide to working a base goes through it slowly for a first-time player.

The collection is also where the writing lives. Progress far enough and the game explains how the Great Pyramid of Giza was constructed, how Egyptians learned to read hieroglyphs, and why only the pharaoh was allowed to own a cat. Alongside those, the description promises huge treasures, tricky locks and new bonus tiles, so later chambers ask more of you than the first ones. Freeing the lower rows early matters in Mahjong Jungle World as well.

The frame is unusually large at 1280 by 768, which suits a layout that has to hold tomb decoration and a stack of tiles at once. Riddles: Egypt is marked mobile-ready, so a fingertip selects a face as readily as a mouse click. Quest: Candyland Adventures keeps the layered board and changes the shape.

1. Open a chamber and look over the Egyptian layout for two free tiles carrying the same face.
2. Take them as a pair to clear them and expose the pieces underneath.
3. Finish the level to claim the artifact it holds.
4. Read the artifact to unlock the next stretch of the Giza valley, Old city, Desert or Nile.

• Chase the artifacts — they are the progress bar in Riddles: Egypt, not the tile count.
• Expect the locks — tricky locks are listed among the later obstacles, so a level that stops cooperating is doing so by design.
• Learn the bonus faces — new bonus tiles arrive as you go, and mistaking one for an ordinary face wastes a free move.
• Scan the full width — at 1280 by 768 the outer stacks stay legible, so sweep the edges before digging into the middle.