Swopper is a game where you "swop" blocks from place to place, doing your best to match 3 or more of them together. You play as Swopper, intergalactic spacesuit-wearing orangutan hero kidnapped recruited by extraterrestrial visitors to save their planet from a block apocalypse.
UPDATE!
Changes 10/02/26
- Made the Pickaxe more interesting by having each sparkle block increase the bonus multiplier by 1. Hopefully I didn't make it OP.
- Put the bonus multiplier in the header near the score, so you can keep an eye on it
Changes 09/02/26
- New powerup: Time Out! Time freezes, allowing you to set up big matches risk-free.
- Fireworks pop when you achieve a 12x multiplier or higher, extending the current level a bit each time
- Added total blocks matched to the high score list
Changes 08/06/26
- Added more high scores to the list
- Added level and best match to the high score list
- Added little progress bars for the next block and the next level
- Added some inspirational verbs to the powerup prize wheel
- Added some panic-inducing camera shake for when you're about to lose
- No more accidental matches when pulling in a new row
- Simultaneous matches now increment the multiplier correctly
Changes 03/21/26
Powerups
- Pickaxe powerup now puts gold sparkles on 5 blocks. Busting one of these blocks awards bonus points that double each time.
- 1st powerup arrives sooner at 2000 points, but subsequent powerups arrive less frequently, at 4000 points
Scoring
All chain combos increase the multiplier, even matches of 3. Matches of any kind increase it by 1x. Matches of 4 jump start the multiplier to 4x, matches of 5 jump start the chain to 8x, and matches of 6+ jump start the chain to 12x.
Difficulty
The difficulty curve has been tightened. It now starts off a bit quicker, but tapers off a bit slower. Overall the difficulty has increased (shorter play times are my preference), but you won't hit the difficulty wall so abruptly as before.
Other
Minor changes to colors, sound effects, and a few bug fixes.
Changes 02/02/26
Multipliers
- Formerly: 4x for matches of 4, 6x for 5+
- Now: 4x for matches of 4, 8x for 5, and 12x for 6+
Movement
- Formerly: To add a new row you had to press down explicitly while on the bottom row
- Now: Holding down adds new rows continuously (be careful!)
Other changes
- Level number displayed at the top of the screen
- Minor graphical improvements (including new visuals for the Bolt powerup)
- Music toggle is now in the pause menu
- Various bug fixes
- More information on how to play (see below!)
Time to Swop!
Swopper is a fast-paced arcade action puzzle game where your aim is to clear as many blocks from the screen as possible before they overwhelm you. Be fast! Score big! Swop or die!!!
How to play
- Swop blocks to get them into position
- Match 3 or more blocks to clear them from the screen
- The more blocks in your match, the bigger the multiplier!
- Stay alive as long as you can to achieve a high score!
Controls
d-pad: swop
Scoring
Each subsequent match in a chain combo adds 1x to the score multiplier
Matches of 4 jump start the multiplier to 4x
Matches of 5 jump start the multiplier to 8x
Matches of 6+ jump start the multiplier to 12x
While the multiplier is at 12 or above, matches will pop fireworks which extend the current level a bit
Multiplier resets at the completion of each chain
Tips
- Press down on the bottom row to introduce a new row. A tall stack of blocks has a higher potential for chain combos.
- Multipliers matter. Get 4's and 5's every chance you get.
- Combos keep the multiplier alive! Matches lower on the screen have a better chance for a combo!
- Powerups matter. Use them to keep tall columns to a minimum.
- The Pickaxe can repeatedly hit the same column if you do a quick tap
- The clock is ticking. The speed increases every 60 seconds, so get your points early!
Powerups - 1st awarded at 2000, subsequent awarded every 4000
There are three powerups to help you tame the block deluge.
Pickaxe
Dig through blocks one at a time to shrink tall columns. Clever usage can trigger combos. Some blocks conceal gold for bonus points!
Push
Get buff and push the whole block pile across the screen!
Bolt
Work up a charge and blast an entire color into oblivion! Your first match will set it off.
Time Out
Time freezes, allowing you to set up big matches risk-free!
I hope you enjoy Swopper!
This is great but I wish I could jump when not in the middle of the blocks to reach a higher stack. Or the ability to grab a block so I can take it with me.
had to try this when I saw that gif. very fun, and feels like a classic arcade game.
Sweeet, glad you like it 💪
For those who have played it, what's your high score?
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I finally managed to beat the high score I set in the initial version! (Haha)
It’s easy to get impatient and just go for the matches right in front of you, but I feel like aiming for 4- or 5-tile matches makes power-ups more likely to appear, which often helps me get out of a tight spot.
Shift those are really good scores. You're right about 4 and 5-matches; they jump start your bonus multipliers (4x and 8x, respectively). And powerups show up based on your score.
Impatience sometimes works out if you have a lot of blocks on the screen because you end up with more luck combos.
I hesitate to bring this up right after the update, but I encountered a bug in this version(#swopper-10).
If you destroy a power-up item block using a pickaxe, those blocks will stop appearing permanently from that point on.
I suspect that a similar issue might occur if a power-up item block appears while another power-up is already active.
Since it depends on timing, I imagine it is a rare occurrence.
I set a new high score!
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I salute you shift, LOL. My best is 64,850, so I think that makes you the world record holder 😄
The very next game after that post:
I also had a case where I matched a sparkle block while the push powerup was active and it just started the next powerup. More debugging needed for the pickaxe.
Also, apologies for the stealth updates.
v9 addressed feedback that the shaking was too intense :D
v10 addressed a bug with the reduced shaking, and addressed a scoring bug where simultaneous matches did not grant enough points. I try not to touch scoring unless there is a bug, and I also try not to make the game harder now that it has settled.
Edit: I made the bug happen, but I can't consistently reproduce it even if I cheat! I will fix it somehow though.
Bug identified and squashed. (Pickaxe was not clearing the block state.) Good report, thank you 👍
I assume it's still possible for the powerup sparkle to appear during pickaxe, but I don't yet understand how. At least it won't block future powerups :)
Thank you for the fix!
The bug hasn't recurred so far.
The issue where power-up item blocks appear in rapid succession immediately after being destroyed looks something like this:
My current playstyle involves holding off on hitting item blocks while continuing to rack up my score. This way, I only collect the item when I'm in a tight spot, hoping that a new item block will appear immediately after the item's effect wears off.
That sounds like a solid strategy. Lately I tend to greedily consume them as they appear, but I should probably at least defer that a bit.
This reminds me, I need to...
- Fix pickaxe so that it will trigger the next powerup if you destroy the powerup block
- Make the powerup sparkle more distinct from the pickaxe sparkles because I'm colorblind and can barely tell the difference 😄
Edit: Was playing on Steam Deck (not my usual choice) and got a crazy high score 😯
By focusing entirely on leveling the terrain, you can achieve even higher scores.
Of course, remember to ensure the blocks are as flat as possible before activating a power-up.
Once the power-up is ready, raise the blocks so that their average height is above the halfway mark.
This makes it much easier to aim for combos and simultaneous matches using tools other than the pickaxe.
I haven't managed to reach Level 10—likely due to the heavy reliance on luck—so for all practical purposes, Level 9 feels like the end of the line.😅
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Everything you say is true. Flatness is the key, as is a deep well of blocks. Amazing score!!! 💪
Pickaxe is weakest but can help with flatness and can still trigger combos if you are careful.
Here is where I stand:
I finally hit level 10. I feel like I could have hit 11 but I made a mistake.
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