Drop, match and merge your way to the giant orb. Orb Merge is a free drop-and-merge puzzle game. Aim each orb into the jar, match two of a kind to merge them into bigger orbs and keep the pile under the line.
How to play
You have a glass jar and an endless supply of smiling orbs. The orb you are holding hangs above the jar. Slide your finger left or right along the top to aim it, then let go to drop it. A faint dotted line shows where it will land. On a computer you can aim by moving the mouse over the jar and click to drop, or use the arrow keys (or A and D) to aim and Space to drop.
Orbs roll, bump and pile up with real physics. When two orbs of the same size and colour touch, they merge into one orb of the next size, right where they met. The new orb pushes its neighbours aside and may touch another of its kind and merge again. Chains like that are where the big scores come from.
There are eleven orb sizes, from a tiny rose orb to a glowing pearl giant. Only the five smallest can be dropped; everything bigger has to be built by merging. The row of dots under your score lights up as you make each new size. The box in the top corner shows the orb after this one, so you can plan ahead.
Rules
- The dashed line near the top of the jar is the limit. An orb that is falling in can cross it freely.
- If an orb comes to rest above the line, the line turns red and starts flashing, and a red bar counts down. If the pile is still over the line after about two seconds, the round ends.
- Merge the orb that sticks up in time and the warning fades away.
- The line also starts to glow and pulse as the pile gets close to it, so you get a little notice before things get tight.
Scoring
Each merge scores the value of the orb it creates. The second size is worth 3 points, the third 6, the fourth 10, and so on, growing with every size up to 66 for the pearl giant. Merging two pearl giants makes them both vanish for a 100 point bonus and frees up a huge amount of room. Quick follow-up merges show a combo counter, and since each step of a chain makes a bigger orb, chains add up fast.
Tips
- Keep the big orbs on one side. Building up from one corner gives small orbs a clear place to fall and merge.
- Watch the next orb. If the next one matches something on the pile, save a spot next to it.
- Don’t bury small orbs. A lonely small orb trapped under big ones is wasted space for the rest of the round.
- Use the bounce. A merge shoves nearby orbs around and can roll two matching orbs together.
A round lasts a few minutes, or much longer once you master chains. Your best score is saved on this device.