Friday Puzzle #83 - Mystery Puzzle

One of my favorite challenges in the world of puzzles is to try to solve an unfamiliar puzzle in a foreign magazine (most typically in Dutch or Japanese) where not being able to understand the instructions is half the battle. Looking at the example picture, or more often at one of the solutions, lets you try to divine the rules without any real knowledge of the language.

Instruction-less puzzles have been used a few times at the World Puzzle Championship, and the biggest hurdle is always to have a clear enough example so that the solver can actually figure out what is on your mind. This often means "simple rules", but not always. This week, I offer my own attempt at a mystery puzzle type with no written instructions. Enjoy.

Example:


Puzzles:




ETA: Circle in R2C1 of the example, as noticed by zotmeister.