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Visual Sequence Continuation
A horizontal strip shows the first three frames of a value progression — predict the fourth.
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A horizontal strip shows the first three frames of a value progression — predict the fourth.
Visual sequence continuation puzzles show a 1×4 horizontal strip with three cells visible and a fourth marked '?'. A single attribute (size, fill, border, count, or rotation) progresses through a fixed value set across the cells; predict the fourth value to complete the sequence. The mechanic is the visual analog of numeric sequence completion (the literature on number-series tests dates to early 20th-century psychometrics).
cell[i] = values[i % N] for i ∈ {0, 1, 2, 3}
- size: small → medium → large → ? (predict xlarge)
- fill: empty → quarter → half → ? (predict filled)
- border: none → dotted → dashed → ? (predict solid)
- count: 1 → 2 → 3 → ? (predict 4)
- rotation: 0° → 90° → 180° → ? (predict 270°)
How to recognize it
- Identify which single attribute changes from frame to frame
- Confirm the change is monotonic (always growing/turning in one direction)
- Pick the answer that continues the progression by the same step
Common mistakes
- Picking a frame that is identical to one already shown
- Predicting in the wrong direction (e.g. shrinking when sequence is growing)
- Confusing the rule attribute with another attribute that happens to be uniform
Step-by-step walkthrough
A 1×4 strip shows three small circles, then medium circles, then large circles. The fourth cell is '?'. What goes there?
- Identify the changing attribute: size
- Confirm the progression direction: ascending
- Apply the next step in the progression: xlarge
Answer: Extra-large circle