Slow down on the tricky ones; speed comes with reps.
Rules & what counts
Find the Missing Countries — Rules & What Counts
Twenty countries have quietly vanished from the world map — their outlines are gone and their neighbors' borders just... continue. Type the names of the missing to restore them.
This mode flips map knowledge on its head: instead of recalling names, you're proofreading the planet. Spotting that something is missing in the Balkans is the real test.
How to play
Study the map, find the gaps, and type the missing countries' names — each correct answer pops its country back onto the map.
The 20 missing countries are drawn fresh every run.
Find all 20 in under 3 minutes for the Eagle Eye achievement. Give up at any time to reveal the stragglers.
What counts in this quiz
20 randomly chosen countries per run — microstates are left out, since a missing map-circle is impossible to spot.
What's not included — and why
Territories and dependencies — Greenland belongs to the Kingdom of Denmark, Puerto Rico is a US territory, and Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, so none of them are answers.
Constituent countries — Curaçao is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and England, Scotland, and Wales are parts of the United Kingdom, not sovereign states. Typing England or Scotland is credited to the United Kingdom.
Unrecognized claimants beyond Taiwan and Kosovo — places like Somaliland or Transnistria lack broad international recognition, so they are not counted.
Good to know
Vatican City is the smallest country in the world at about 0.44 square kilometers — the entire nation is smaller than many golf courses.
South Sudan is the newest widely recognized country, gaining independence from Sudan in 2011.
Kiribati is the only country that sits in all four hemispheres — it straddles both the equator and the 180th meridian.