LAN: Letters against Numbers
Letters against numbers
A free game where your letters defend a notebook page from the numbers falling on it. Tap them to help, upgrade your squad mid-run, scratch your loot of syllables and climb higher every time.
- Free, no purchases
- Android and browser
- English and Spanish
- Works offline
How it plays
Each game is a run: your squad of letters climbs the page while the numbers come down for it. Height is your score, and every run leaves you something for the next one.
Your letters fight on their own
You place your letters in a formation at the bottom of the page and they attack by themselves. You tap the numbers to lend a hand: your taps hit harder the higher you are, so they never stop being useful.
Upgrade them mid-run
Every number you beat drops diphthongs. Spend them on any letter: more attack, more health, more speed, crits, regeneration, range, defenses or its skill. Those upgrades last as long as the run.
Scratch your loot
Climbing earns syllables, which arrive face down. When your squad falls, you scratch them on a ticket: each syllable is a copy of every letter in it, and copies level your letters up for good. Sometimes a new letter shows up.
Climb higher every time
A boss arrives every 100 meters, and numbers gain powers as you climb: a 7³ holds out longer than a 7², and you see it written on top. Your record goes onto the weekly leaderboard of your country and the world.
27 letters, each with its own way to fight
The whole Spanish alphabet, Ñ included. You start with just the A and the others show up on your tickets as you get higher. Nearly all of them bring a skill of their own: cleaves that hit several numbers at once, domes that shield, fire that burns, orbits, turrets, vortexes that pull numbers together, zombies… and a few more that are better found by playing.
Each letter has a role (tank, melee or ranged) and a damage type: numeric or literary. Some numbers shrug off one of the two, so a mixed squad gets further than a single-type one.
39 numbers, 5 symbols and 6 bosses
Numbers are not all the same: each has its quirk. 1s come in packs, 3 shrugs off numeric damage, 7 dodges… and further up come numbers from math, the internet and pop culture, each behaving just as you would expect. Some don't even attack: symbols heal, shield or boost the numbers around them.
In the bestiary every number shows as "?" until you first see it, so nothing spoils what is coming. What you always see is its power: the small exponent it carries, telling you how much stronger it has become.
Three currencies, three jobs
| Syllables | Diphthongs | Triptongs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What for | Permanent progress: they turn into letter copies | Upgrades during the run | Squad slots, formations, speed and the shop |
| How you earn them | Climbing (at 50 m and every 100 m) and, now and then, beating numbers | Beating numbers and bosses | Daily gift, good runs, day streaks and weekly prizes |
| When the run ends | Kept, as copies | Lost | Kept |
Triptongs are scarce on purpose: they pay for what stays with you.
Your squad, your formation
You start with one slot and can reach ten. Letters stand in rows, front to back, and formations are written like in football: 3-2, 2-2-1, 1-3-1… Numbers go for the nearest letter, so the front row takes the hits and the back row shoots. Each slot count has one free formation, and the rest are bought with triptongs for good.
A shop for looks only
With triptongs you can change how your letters look (Scrabble tiles, color letters) and your notebook (red margin, graph paper, chalkboard or night). None of it changes how you play: it is pure taste. The mystery pack always shows its odds before you open it, and a duplicate gives part of the price back.
Leaderboards and prizes
Your best height of the week goes onto the world leaderboard and your country's. Every Monday the week closes and the world's top 100 win triptongs; the podium also gets a trophy. Runs are checked on the server before they count, so what you see on the board is real. And when a run goes just right, share it as a card or a GIF.
Play wherever you like
In your browser
At game.lettersagainstnumbers.com, on a computer, an iPhone or any phone. It installs like an app and works offline.
On Android
The Google Play app, free. With optional rewarded ads that give rewards, never forced.
With the same game
Link your Google account in Profile and carry on on any device. A run in progress picks up from its last saved point.
Install it as an app
No store needed: the browser game installs on your phone or computer and opens full screen from its icon, like any app. It updates itself and works offline. Go to game.lettersagainstnumbers.com and follow the steps for your device:
iPhone and iPad (Safari)
- Tap the Share button, the square with the arrow pointing up. In newer versions of Safari it is inside the "⋯" button.
- Choose "Add to Home Screen".
- Tap "Add" and open LAN from its icon.
Android (Chrome)
- Open the browser's ⋮ menu.
- Choose "Install app" or "Add to Home screen".
- Confirm and open LAN from its icon. If you prefer the store, it is on Google Play too.
Computer
- In Chrome or Edge, click the install icon at the end of the address bar, or look for "Install" in the menu.
- In Safari on a Mac, go to File → "Add to Dock".
- LAN opens in a window of its own, like any other program.
Inside the game you have the same under Profile → "Install as an app". Firefox on a computer doesn't install websites: open it in Chrome, Edge or Safari for that.
Guides to get off to a good start
- Getting started in LAN: a guide to your first runs
What to do in your first games of LAN: how a run goes, what to spend diphthongs on, how the syllable ticket works and what to buy with your first triptongs.
- Syllables, diphthongs and triptongs: LAN's currencies explained
How LAN's three currencies are earned and spent, with the real costs: copies per level, run upgrades, squad slots, formations, speed and the looks shop.
- Squad and formations in LAN: how to place your letters
How to build a good squad in LAN: letter roles, numeric and literary damage, how the game works out damage, which formation to pick, and example squads.
- Number powers in LAN: why a 7³ outlasts a 7²
What the little exponents on LAN's numbers mean, how much stronger each power makes them, the height at which each one steps up, and how to get ready for it.
Frequently asked questions
Is LAN free?
Yes. It is free to play from start to finish and has no in-game purchases: everything in it (letters, slots, formations, shop looks) is earned by playing.
Does it have ads?
On Android, only rewarded ads, and always optional: you watch one if you want a reward (reviving your squad, doubling a run's syllables, speeding the game up, or one triptong a day). They never pop up on their own. The browser version has no ads.
Can I play on iPhone, iPad or a computer?
Yes, in your browser: go to game.lettersagainstnumbers.com. You can install it as an app from the browser itself: the steps for each device are under Install it as an app. On Android there is also the Google Play app.
Can I keep the same game on my phone and in the browser?
Yes. Link your Google account in the Profile tab and sign in with the same account on the other device: your progress lives on the server, not on the device. If you link nothing, you play as a guest and the game lives on that device only.
Does it work offline?
Yes. You can play runs without a connection and the game saves everything as soon as you are back online. The very first time you do need a connection, to create your account.
What happens if I close the game in the middle of a run?
Nothing bad: the run goes on by itself while you are away. When you come back you see a summary with the meters climbed, the numbers destroyed and what you earned. Diphthong upgrades and taps only happen while you play.
Which languages is it in?
Spanish and English. The game picks your device's language and you can change it in Profile → Settings.