# Thoughts on Puzzle 26 : NUMBERS GAME **URL:** \ **Category:** General\ **Tags:** hack-the-galaxy\ **Created:** [August 15, 2022, 1:53am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649 "2022-08-15T01:53:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MusaddiqueAli](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/musaddiqueali/32/3309_2.png) [@MusaddiqueAli](https://community.rapyd.net/u/MusaddiqueAli)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 2:15am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/49 "2022-08-16T02:15:42Z")
Instead of throwing your phone out of frustration, you may use something else, in case you already have that. And that thing is the answer. ---
**Author:** ![Livi1010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e274bd/32.png) [@Livi1010](https://community.rapyd.net/u/Livi1010)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 3:04am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/51 "2022-08-16T03:04:55Z")
What was the hint?? In the email? ---
**Author:** ![zygopteran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a183cd/32.png) [@zygopteran](https://community.rapyd.net/u/zygopteran)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 3:21am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/52 "2022-08-16T03:21:59Z")
First-rate use of “whom” there. Thirty points to Gryffindor. (Update: This post was flagged by my fellow users; I don’t believe that was fair. I wholeheartedly yield to the judgment of the staff.) ---
**Author:** ![Nacious](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/nacious/32/19831_2.png) [@Nacious](https://community.rapyd.net/u/Nacious)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 4:36am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/53 "2022-08-16T04:36:38Z")
damn really got me checkmated here! you win! I surrender! You’ve proven yourself to be an alpha with this one! ---
**Author:** ![graham1118](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/graham1118/32/19935_2.png) [@graham1118](https://community.rapyd.net/u/graham1118)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 8:55am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/55 "2022-08-16T08:55:35Z")
The groups of touching, white circles appear to have no left-to-right order. Once I solve the puzzle and alphaconvert the numbers in the white circles to letters, how do I arrange those letters? guesswork? ---
**Author:** ![mich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@mich](https://community.rapyd.net/u/mich)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:11am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/56 "2022-08-16T09:11:30Z")
They are in order, look again. ---
**Author:** ![graham1118](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/graham1118/32/19935_2.png) [@graham1118](https://community.rapyd.net/u/graham1118)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:14am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/58 "2022-08-16T09:14:52Z")
what about the 4 circle groups at the right of the puzzle? when I get to them, do I then go top to bottom? ---
**Author:** ![mich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@mich](https://community.rapyd.net/u/mich)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:22am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/60 "2022-08-16T09:22:10Z")
Read the instructions - any circles that are adjacent are to be added together. ---
**Author:** ![worior863](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/worior863/32/17869_2.png) [@worior863](https://community.rapyd.net/u/worior863)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:40am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/61 "2022-08-16T09:40:59Z")
Fun to do puzzle. It was difficult at first, and I tried bruteforce it. But after seeing first few spots where answer was certain I was slowly going towards the full answer and in the end made 1 mistake I didnt even notice, but the rest of letters were enough to get the answer. ---
**Author:** ![graham1118](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/graham1118/32/19935_2.png) [@graham1118](https://community.rapyd.net/u/graham1118)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:44am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/62 "2022-08-16T09:44:13Z")
Yes, I understand that. My issue comes when I have all the letters, and I have to order them into 2 words. There has to be an order to each group of white circles. Is the order left to right and top to bottom, like this? 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 3, 1, 1, 1, 2, 3 (numbers represent the number of white circles in a group). I haven’t completely solved the puzzle, but I know for sure some of the letters and want to try and guess the word ---
**Author:** ![mich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@mich](https://community.rapyd.net/u/mich)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 9:57am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/63 "2022-08-16T09:57:45Z")
It’s 11311132113, left to right, top to bottom. ---
**Author:** ![MaiTheOfficial](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/maitheofficial/32/7974_2.png) [@MaiTheOfficial](https://community.rapyd.net/u/MaiTheOfficial)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 10:47am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/65 "2022-08-16T10:47:42Z")
I read them this way, but I get gibberish. ---
**Author:** ![graham1118](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/graham1118/32/19935_2.png) [@graham1118](https://community.rapyd.net/u/graham1118)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 10:55am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/66 "2022-08-16T10:55:38Z")
So I was doing it left to right and top to bottom starting on the left most column (so left to right supersedes). This was wrong. Instead, you need to read them left to right and top to bottom starting at the top row, where top to bottom supersedes. ---
**Author:** ![MaiTheOfficial](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/maitheofficial/32/7974_2.png) [@MaiTheOfficial](https://community.rapyd.net/u/MaiTheOfficial)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 11:14am UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/69 "2022-08-16T11:14:29Z")
I am confident my sums are correct ---
**Author:** ![paulinemay](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/paulinemay/32/18752_2.png) [@paulinemay](https://community.rapyd.net/u/paulinemay)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 1:53pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/70 "2022-08-16T13:53:00Z")
Yes it is left to right and ⬆⬇, once I discovered the password word I smiled because I thought it is something more complicated like with puzzle 25 xD In my opinion its enough to know the first 5 letters to already guess the password because the first word is very obvious, and when you already have the first one, the second is even easier to guess! ---
**Author:** ![slymonke](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/slymonke/32/19772_2.png) [@slymonke](https://community.rapyd.net/u/slymonke)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 4:11pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/71 "2022-08-16T16:11:58Z")
At first I thought that numbers greater than 9 could be used. The text does not clarify this issue. Fortunately, later I read the comments about it and I was able to direct it correctly. 😆 😅 ---
**Author:** ![slymonke](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/slymonke/32/19772_2.png) [@slymonke](https://community.rapyd.net/u/slymonke)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 5:13pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/72 "2022-08-16T17:13:29Z")
By the way, does anyone know who’s the guy sitting next to William Shatner? ---
**Author:** ![zygopteran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a183cd/32.png) [@zygopteran](https://community.rapyd.net/u/zygopteran)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 5:26pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/73 "2022-08-16T17:26:18Z")
If the desired solution uses only numbers less than or equal to 9 and there exists no solution of the board using at least one number greater than 9, then technically the instructions are not wrong. I don’t know if any solution of the latter kind exists. PS They didn’t explicitly restrict us to using positive numbers or integers either. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![zygopteran](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a183cd/32.png) [@zygopteran](https://community.rapyd.net/u/zygopteran)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 5:37pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/74 "2022-08-16T17:37:07Z")
The puzzle asks you to solve the board according to the given rules, then determine the letters, then determine the final answer. If during that process you notice patterns that save you time and effort, great. But it’s frankly inappropriate to try to save yourself time and effort by getting/using information (from others) that isn’t in the puzzle instructions about (1) the number of words in the final answer and (2) the order in which the final answer’s letters appear on the board. ---
**Author:** ![slymonke](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/community.rapyd.net/slymonke/32/19772_2.png) [@slymonke](https://community.rapyd.net/u/slymonke)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2022, 6:00pm UTC](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649/75 "2022-08-16T18:00:25Z")
“They also didn’t explicitly restrict us to using positive numbers or integers.” No, but you can’t convert them to letters, which you can do with numbers greater than 9 or sums of numbers greater than 9 (less than or equal to 26). “[…] then technically the instructions are not wrong.” The challenge is to solve the puzzle, and the solution must comply with the rules provided. If there is ambiguity in the instructions or a necessary rule is omitted, then they are not correct. 🙂 [Previous page](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649.md?page=2) [Next page](https://community.rapyd.net/t/thoughts-on-puzzle-26-numbers-game/54649.md?page=4)