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Space Orbs started life as an entry to the RGCD 16K coding competition (see separate article) but was released without sound or music. Carl-Henrik (who created strategy game Space Moguls) continued to work on the game and Stein Pedersen composed the music.

The story sees aliens attacking Earth with biological weapons stored in coloured orbs, which will detonate if they reach critical mass. The player controls a pair of spaceships, one on each side, that can pick up and move the orbs to create horizontal lines of three or more orbs of the same colour. Orbs can also be passed from one spaceship to the other. When a line is cleared by making a colour match, unsupported orbs above it will fall closer to the Earth and periodically new groups of orbs drop from the top of the screen. A gauge shows how close to critical mass the orbs are, prevented by removing them quickly; clear enough of the orbs and play moves on to the next level. The difficulty curve is welldesigned, with extra colours and greater numbers of starting orbs appearing as the levels increase. The music adds a lot to the game and it is very nicely presented.

The options help tailor the game, including whether the player can switch sides manually. A pleasing puzzle game that is best played in short bursts.

Download: sakrac.itch.io/space-orbs