Years Ago
Something happened on today’s date. Guess the year. Each miss tells you higher or lower and unlocks another clue. You get 6 guesses.
Previous days →History calendar →
On this day, which year?
- Clue 1: Loading clue…
- Clue 2: Unlocks after your first miss
- Clue 3: Unlocks after your second miss
6 guesses left
Loading today's puzzle…
How to play
- Read the date and the first clue: a real event that happened on this day in history.
- Pick a year with the slider, the year box, or the ±1 and ±10 buttons, and press Guess.
- If you miss, you'll see whether the answer is earlier or later, how close you were (Bullseye, Hot, Warm or Cold), and the next clue.
- Land on the exact year within 6 guesses to win and keep your streak going.
When the round ends you find out what happened and how many years ago it was, with links to the sources. Come back tomorrow for a new date and a new event.
Every day's event, with its year and the story behind it, is collected in thehistory calendar, one page per month. Answers for the coming days stay hidden there until they have played.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Years Ago?
- Years Ago is a free daily history game. Each day shows one real event that happened on today's date, and you have 6 guesses to name the year. Every event happened between 1753 and 2024.
- How do I play?
- Read the first clue, then pick a year: drag the slider (1750 to this year), or type it into the year box and fine-tune it with the ±1 and ±10 buttons, then press Guess. After a wrong guess you're told whether the real year is earlier or later. Guessing a year you've already tried doesn't use up a guess.
- How do the clues work?
- There are three clues, from general to specific. The first is shown from the start, the second unlocks after your first miss, and the third after your second miss. Clues never state the year.
- How do the hot/cold feedback and the score work?
- Each guess is rated by how far off it is: Bullseye for the exact year, Hot within 10 years, Warm within 50 years, and Cold beyond that. You win by hitting the exact year. Your round score is your best guess: 1,000 points for the exact year, minus 8 points for every year off, never below 0.
- What do I see when the round ends?
- What happened, how many years ago it was, a short write-up, and links to the sources. If the year falls inside an art movement covered on ponderloop, there is a link to it under "Meanwhile in art".
- Do I need an account to keep a streak?
- No. Your streak, stats and today's progress are saved in your browser on this device. Winning on consecutive days extends your streak, and a loss resets it to zero. A new event unlocks at midnight, your local time.
- Can I play past days?
- Yes. The archive lists every previous day's puzzle. Past days, and replays of today's, are practice rounds: they never change your streak or stats.