Happy Life GamesPet Connect Guide: The Two-Turn Rule, Rocks and Picking the Right Partners
Pet Connect is a pair-matching puzzle in the style often called Onet or "link" games. The board is a grid of cute pets, and you clear them two at a time. The catch is that two identical pets can only be removed if you could draw a line between them that bends no more than twice. That one rule turns a simple matching game into a spatial puzzle about which paths are open and which ones you are about to close.
There is no timer in our version, so you can take as long as you like to think. Below you'll find the exact rules, the patterns to look for, and how to deal with the rocks and big pet families that appear later.
How to play
- Tap a pet to select it. It lifts up slightly. Tap it again to cancel.
- Tap an identical pet. If a valid path exists, a glowing line traces the route and both pets pop.
- If the two pets don't match, or no valid path exists, both shake and the selection is cleared. Nothing else happens, so a wrong tap costs you nothing.
- Clear every pet to win the level.
The path rule
A path is made of straight horizontal and vertical segments that pass only through empty cells. It may have at most two turns, which means it can have one, two or three straight segments. Some examples:
- Two pets side by side always connect (zero turns).
- Two pets in the same row with only empty cells between them connect with a straight line.
- Pets in different rows and columns can connect with an L shape (one turn) if the corner cell is empty.
- A U or Z shape (two turns) can link pets that are farther apart, as long as every cell along the route is clear.
Importantly, there is an empty lane running all the way around the outside of the board. Paths may travel through it. Two pets on the top edge can almost always connect by going up into that lane, across, and back down.
Buttons
Undo brings back the last pair you cleared and can be used as often as you want. Hint highlights a pair and shows its path. Skip lets you move on if a level isn't fun for you right now.
Beginner strategy
Start by clearing the easy stuff, but do it with a purpose. A good order on most boards is:
- Edge pairs first. Pets on the outer rows and columns can use the outside lane, so they are often the easiest to link. Removing them also widens that lane for the pets just inside.
- Adjacent pairs next. Two identical pets touching each other can be cleared at any time, so they are rarely urgent. However, clearing them opens a two-cell gap that new paths can run through.
- Work from the outside in. Every pet you remove from the edge turns into empty space that inner pets can reach. Boards tend to open up like peeling an onion.
When you are unsure where a pet can go, trace its four straight rays (up, down, left, right) until they hit something. Then imagine turning once from any empty cell along those rays. If a matching pet sits on one of those lines, you have a connection.
Advanced techniques
Pick the right partners in a family of four
From level 3, some pets appear four times instead of two. You still remove them in pairs, but now you choose which two go together, and that choice matters. Suppose four cats sit in the corners of a block. Pairing the top two and then the bottom two might work, while pairing them diagonally could leave the last two cats with a rock between them and no route around. Before clearing the first pair of a family, check that the remaining two can still find each other afterward. When the last of a family goes, the game shows "Family cleared!".
Don't save a pet that blocks everything
Sometimes a pet in the middle of a row is the only thing standing between several other pairs. Even if its own partner is far away, look for a way to clear it early. Removing one central blocker can unlock three or four new connections.
Think about what each move closes
Clearing a pair can only open space, never fill it, but the choice of which pair you clear decides which pets are still left standing in the way. If two different pairs can both be cleared, take the one whose removal helps a harder pair. Leave easy pairs that can't be blocked for later.
Recognizing a dead end
It is possible to reach a position where no remaining pair can be connected. The game checks for this and shows "Stuck? Tap Undo or Hint". Undo a few pairs and try a different partner choice, usually in the most recent family of four. The hint button is also smart here: if your position can't be solved, it first rewinds to the last solvable position and then shows you a good pair.
Common mistakes
- Counting turns wrong. A path that goes right, down, right, then down again has three turns and is not allowed. If a link fails, look for an extra bend.
- Forgetting the outside lane. Many players only look inside the grid. The border lane is often the shortest route.
- Clearing the obvious pair in a family. With four or six of a kind, the closest two are not always the right two.
- Treating rocks as temporary. Rocks never go away, so plan routes around them from the start.
What changes in later levels
The first levels are tiny (two by two, then two by three) so you can learn the rule. Level 3 adds two things at once: rocks, which fill a cell permanently and block any path through it, and the first family of four. The board then grows step by step up to six by six, with more rocks forming walls and more families of four.
From level 21, some boards include a family of six of the same pet, which means three pairs to plan instead of two. Every tenth level is a peak with a full board and lots of choices, and the one after it is easier. Each board is generated with a known way to clear it completely, so no level is impossible.
FAQ
Is there a time limit?
No. You can think as long as you need. The only way to fail is to reach a position with no connectable pairs, and undo fixes that.
Can paths go around the outside of the board?
Yes. There is an empty lane around the whole grid, and paths can use it as long as they still have at most two turns.
Does the board ever shuffle?
No. Pets stay where they are until you clear them, which is why the order you choose is the whole puzzle.
Why didn't my two matching pets disappear?
Either every possible route needs more than two turns, or something (a pet or a rock) is blocking the way. Clear a pet that sits on the route and try again.