Capitalibrate

A geography game with no map in it at all. You are told which capital you start from and which one you are aiming at, and you have to do the two things nobody can actually do: point a compass in the right direction, and say how far apart they are.

1. Turn the compass dial to the bearing you would set off on.
2. Move the slider, or type the number, to enter your distance.
3. Lock it in. Your score depends on the bearing and the distance together, across five rounds.

Most geography games ask you to name a country. This one names everything up front and still leaves you stuck, because knowing where Lima and Nairobi are is not the same as knowing which way you would fly or how far it is. Taking the map away is the whole design, and it exposes how much of your geography is memorised pictures rather than a model of the globe. Not the pick if you want a single clean answer, because everything here is a matter of degree.

Both halves of the answer are scored, the bearing and the distance, and a running points total sits above the board. Submit and the round shows you the correct distance.

Core play

Play consists of five rounds: each round names a starting capital and a target capital (there is no map). You turn the compass dial to the bearing you would set off on (aim along the great-circle route), then enter a distance using a slider or by typing the number and lock it in. Both the bearing and the distance are scored and a running points total is shown above the board; after submitting the round the game shows the correct distance. A km/mi toggle beside the distance heading switches the round's distances between the two.

• Aim along the great circle, not along a flat map. The game asks for the direction you would start along the shortest globe route, and that is rarely the direction a flat map suggests.