Tube Sort
In Tube Sort you pour colours between tubes until every tube holds a single colour. Free, no install, no sign-up. Every puzzle is generated solvable.
In Tube Sort, each tube holds a stack of coloured segments. Pour one colour at a time between tubes until every tube is either empty or a single colour, top to bottom.
about 27.2 KB
Works offline after the first visit. No install, no sign-up.
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How to play Tube Sort
What you are trying to do
Sort the colours so each tube ends up with one colour only. A tube is finished when it is empty or holds a single colour all the way down.
How pouring works
Tap a tube to pick it up, then tap another to pour. Only the top run of the same colour moves, and it only goes to an empty tube or onto a matching colour. Anything else is refused rather than half-poured.
The tube that is nearly full is the trap
A tube with one free slot can only take one segment, so filling your spare tubes early is how a puzzle becomes unsolvable. Keeping one tube empty as working space is usually worth more than the segments you gain by filling it.
Every puzzle is generated solvable
Puzzles are built by starting from the finished arrangement and shuffling backwards, so a solution always exists. It is not a random pile you have to hope is possible.
Mistakes are recoverable
You can undo your last pour, so a wrong tap is not the end of the round. There is no clock and no move limit either.
Tube Sort Tips and Strategy
Keep one tube empty
A tube with a single free slot can only accept one more segment, and that is how a solvable puzzle turns into an unsolvable one. Filling every spare tube early with partial colours leaves you nowhere to put the colour buried underneath them. Keeping one tube completely empty is worth more than the segments you gain by filling it.
Read the bottom of the stack
The run on the top of a tube is rarely the one that decides the puzzle. A single colour sitting under a different one has to be reached from above, which means clearing its neighbour first. Before you pour anywhere, read the bottom of each tube and pick the colour that needs to be uncovered soonest.
Finish one tube before the next
A tube that is one colour from top to bottom is finished and stops mattering, which hands you a spare slot back. Pouring a fresh colour into a half-sorted tube instead spreads that colour across two tubes and frees nothing. Count the completed tubes after every pour, because that count is your real measure of working space.
Tube Sort — Frequently Asked Questions
Can a puzzle be impossible?
No. Puzzles are generated by shuffling backwards from a solved state, which guarantees a solution exists before you start.
Why will a tube not accept my pour?
The segments only move onto a matching colour or into a completely empty tube, and only the top run of one colour moves at a time. If the destination does not qualify, the pour does not happen.
Can I undo?
Yes, you can take back your last pour. There is no limit on undos and no penalty for using them.
Does it need installing or an account?
No. It runs in the browser on a phone, tablet or computer and works offline after the first visit.
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