Harbor Gates

Sliding block puzzle
1 player
Daily challenge
Phones and computers

Harbor Gates is a sliding block puzzle that plays in the browser on phones, tablets and computers, for one player. It has a daily challenge, the same for everyone that day.

You slide boats along their rows and columns and out through the harbour gate of their own colour. The tide drops with every move, drying sandy shallows into sand that no boat can enter, so wasted moves close channels. Each harbour has a par for three stars, with 40 harbours in order plus a new daily harbour.

Play Harbor Gates

How to play

Drag a boat along its line
Slide a boat out through the gate of its colour (same mark)
The tide drops with each move: shallows dry into sand. Par is the fewest moves

The game shows these steps as you play, the first time.

Harbor Gates gameplay — Harbor Gates in play

Controls

Drag a boat along its line; drag it out through its gate
Keys: Tab picks a boat, arrows slide it, U undo, R restart

Tips

Sliding the same boat again in the same direction extends your last move instead of counting a new one, so nudging a boat along in steps costs nothing extra.
The number on a shallow is the moves left before it dries to sand; a boat already on it can still leave, but nothing can enter once it is dry.
From harbour 6 every harbour is kept only if the drying shallows force a longer route than a still sea would, so the obvious short path usually dries out.

Is there a daily harbour in Harbor Gates?

Yes. The menu switches between the numbered harbours and a daily harbour built from the date, the same for everyone that day. Your best move count for today's harbour is kept and shown on the end card, while the numbered harbours save stars instead. There are 40 numbered harbours in order and more after them.

How is par set?

A breadth-first search solves every harbour before it is offered and par is its fewest moves. Finishing at par earns three stars, up to two over earns two, and more earns one. Undo gives the move back and brings the tide up again, so trying a route costs nothing. Harbours whose par falls outside their level's band are thrown out.

About this game

Made by Sucia in Houston, Texas. Built with AI assistance, designed and tested by Sucia. Last updated October 4, 2026. It plays in the browser on phones, tablets and computers, with no download and no sign-in; your best scores and progress stay in this browser on this device. Without a pass, every game is free for 5 minutes a game and 30 minutes a day; an Arcade pass removes the limit. How Sucia makes and tests its games.

Also by Sucia

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