Puzzle #4 · Saturday, October 3

Five prompts.
Find the empty wave.

Name one thing nobody else will. The rarer your answer, the bigger the score.

Party wave1.0
Kook move1.5
In the lineup3.0
Uncrowded6.0
Locals only8.5
Secret spot10.0

Each prompt asks for one thing in an open category. After a 3-2-1 you have 30 seconds to type one answer: a wrong one bounces while the clock keeps running, and running out scores 0. A crowded answer is a party wave; one almost nobody else gave is a secret spot, worth 10.

Answer sheets come from public lists, mostly Wikipedia, with how rare each answer should be from its page views, checked by eye. As players answer, the real crowd takes over. One scored game per device per day.

How to play

Five prompts a day, the same for everyone, each an open category: name a bird, a breakfast cereal, a board game. New ones roll in at midnight Pacific.
After a 3-2-1 you have 30 seconds to type one answer and press Enter. Typos are forgiven; each prompt says what counts as the same answer. A wrong answer bounces while the clock keeps running, and running out scores 0.
Each answer scores by how few surfers gave it: a party wave (everyone said it) 1.0, a kook move (the clever pick everyone else had too) 1.5, in the lineup 3.0, uncrowded 6.0, locals only 8.5, and a secret spot 10. A wrong answer bounces while the clock runs; running out scores 0.
Until 20 surfers have answered a prompt, its tiers are an estimate from public data (how often each answer is looked up), and the card says so. “Other surfers said this” is only ever the real count.
The whole heat is one wave, and every answer is a trick on it: a party wave is a bogged turn, a secret spot a backflip. After the fifth, five judges score your wave out of 10: the average of your five. Your first game on a device counts.

The trick each score earns
Score	Trick
10.0	Backflip or Air 360
8.5-9.9	Indy grab
6.5-8.4	Frontside air
4.5-6.4	Lip snap
2.5-4.4	Carve
0.1-2.4	Bogged turn
0.0	Big bobble

Ride the curve. When you finish, you'll see how your heat stacks up against everyone who played today.

Calm motion

Rides play without flips, spins, or tumbling, waves rise in place instead of rolling in, and the sea stays still.

No sign-up. We store only an anonymous, hashed device ID with your scores. Answer sheets come from public lists, mostly Wikipedia, with how rare each answer should be from its page views, checked by eye. As players answer, the real crowd takes over. Each photo’s author and license are under it. More in About.

Five prompts.Find the empty wave.

Five prompts.
Find the empty wave.