Mandalagaba

What it is

MandalaGaba is a symmetry drawing board that runs in the browser and, if you want, with other people. The canvas opens in a random color with faint axes through the middle, and every line you draw is repeated around the center, so a wobble becomes a petal and a scribble becomes a mandala. Each session has its own address you can send to a friend, who then draws on the same canvas as you, live.

How to play

Click, hold and drag. Use the panel to set how many symmetry axes you want, whether strokes are mirrored as well as rotated, and pick a color from the wheel, a brush thickness, a line tool or a fill. Undo is one click. Press save to keep the picture, or start a new session for a clean board. To draw together, share the address in the bar or use the button that finds you a drawing partner, and use the little chat box to argue about who ruined it.

What makes it different

Most symmetry pads are solo toys. This one is a shared room. The forking option lets you take a copy of someone's drawing and carry on alone, there is a statistics button, and the whole thing is free of ads and trackers, which is rare for a tool this capable. It is also more of a proper drawing app than a gag, with a real color wheel and a fill tool.

Why it is on Bored

Most symmetry pads are a solo pastime, and this one hands a second person a brush on the same canvas, live, through a shared address. That makes it the pick for a quiet call with someone far away, or for anyone who wants their doodles to look intentional, since the axes turn a wobble into a petal. The real color wheel and fill tool mean the result can be more than a gag.

Tips

• Start with eight or twelve axes, that is where mandalas happen
• Use the line tool for clean spokes and the brush for the soft parts
• Send the session address to someone and draw at the same time
• Fork a session if you want to keep their start and lose their finish

FAQ