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Shadow Match shows an object and asks which silhouette belongs to it. Stripping an object to its outline removes colour, texture and internal detail, leaving only shape — and people are much worse at recognising shape alone than they expect.
An object is shown in full detail.
Several silhouettes are offered.
Choose the one matching the object's outline.
Silhouettes get more similar as you progress.
Your score combines accuracy with speed.
Shape abstraction — extracting outline from a detailed object. It is the perceptual step behind recognising something from a glimpse or in poor light.
Look at the extremities. Protrusions and limbs distinguish silhouettes far more than the body does.
Check proportions rather than absolute size. Silhouettes may be scaled.
Count the distinct protrusions in the object, then count them in each silhouette.
Eliminate on one feature across all options rather than fully comparing each one.
Colour and internal detail carry most of the information you normally use. Removing them leaves only outline, which is a much weaker cue.
In later rounds, yes, which combines shape matching with mental rotation.
Pattern Match compares like with like. Here you compare a detailed object to an abstracted outline.
Count protrusions. It eliminates most options in one pass.