Alibi

Alibi is a small logic puzzle in the style of a board-game mystery. Four suspects, four places, four objects and five clue cards. Flip as few clues as you can, then make one accusation.

How it works

Somebody at the Starlite Motor Lodge has been conked on the head. Every suspect was in a different place holding a different object, and one of them did it.

Flip clue cards one at a time. Use the logic grid to keep track: tap a square once to rule it out and again to confirm it. When you're sure, pick the culprit, the place and the object and make your accusation.

Scoring

A correct accusation scores 100 with one clue flipped, then 85, 70, 55 and 40 for two to five clues. A wrong accusation scores nothing.

Every case is checked

Each puzzle is generated and then checked by a solver that tries every possible arrangement of suspects, places and objects. All five clues always lead to exactly one answer, and the first three or four are always enough on their own.

Example

Clue 1: “The weapon was the bowling pin.” Clue 2: “It happened in the parking lot.” Clue 3: “Neither Buddy nor Peggy was in the parking lot.” Clue 4: “Opal was either in the diner or in Room 12.”

Opal, Buddy and Peggy weren't in the parking lot, so Hank was. The deed happened there with the bowling pin, so it was Hank, in the parking lot, with the bowling pin, after four clues.

Tips

1Clues about the deed itself narrow down the answer fastest.
2Each row and column of the grid has exactly one tick. Use that to fill in the gaps.
3If you're not sure, flip another clue. A wrong guess costs more than a clue.