Critter Care guide: serve late, chain fast, never drop a plaster

The goal and how a run works

You are looking after a row of critters on cushions. Every so often one of them wants something, shown as an icon in a bubble with a ring around it that drains as its patience runs out. A tap on that critter serves it. There is no wrong action to pick, only a wrong critter to pick, so the game is about order and timing.

A critter whose ring empties gets upset, turns grey under a rain cloud and takes one of your three hearts. The third upset ends the run. There is no other way to lose, and nothing to lose points on.

The five needs

The "how common" column applies once every need has appeared. Before then, only the unlocked ones are drawn.

Patience does not stay at those figures. Every need's patience shrinks steadily from the start of the run, to three quarters by 30 seconds and to half by 60 seconds, then stays there. At that floor a plaster gives you 2.25 seconds and a nap 4.5.

How new needs arrive

• At the start a new need turns up about every 2 seconds. That gap shortens every second until it bottoms out at 0.62 seconds, about 53 seconds in. Each gap varies by up to 15 percent either way.
• A need only goes to a critter that is free: one that is not already waiting, not enjoying its last serve (about half a second), and not sulking after an upset (2.4 seconds). If nobody is free, that need is simply skipped.
• New critters sit down at 10, 24 and 40 seconds, taking you from three to six.

That second rule matters. The board can never hold more needs than it has critters, so the pressure is always visible.

Scoring in detail

Each serve is worth 10 points. On top of that:

• Just in time: serving with 1.2 seconds or less left, while the ring pulses red, adds 15, for 25 in total.
• Chain: serves less than 1.6 seconds apart build a chain. The multiplier depends on the chain's length.
• Rush: every 30 seconds from the 30-second mark, a 5-second rush doubles every serve. The wall turns gold while it lasts.

The chain ends if more than 1.6 seconds pass without a serve, or if you tap a critter that wants nothing, including one that is content after a serve or sulking after an upset. A tap on the floor between cushions does nothing.

These stack. A just-in-time serve at x5 during a rush is worth 250 points, where a plain serve is worth 10.

Two-step needs

From 25 seconds on, some critters want two things in a row. The share rises until it reaches 30 percent of needs at 50 seconds. The second need shows as a small badge on the bubble. It is always a different need from the first and is never a plaster.

The second step starts its own full patience the moment you serve the first. That has a useful side effect: you can serve it immediately with a second tap. Two quick taps on the same critter add two to your chain.

The core technique: batch your serves

Just-in-time points and chains pull in opposite directions. One asks you to wait; the other asks you to keep serving. The way to get both is to batch.

1. Let the patient needs wait. A nap or bath has plenty of time early on.
2. Watch for several rings nearing red at around the same time.
3. Serve them in a quick burst, less than 1.6 seconds apart, catching the late ones in the red window.

A burst of four or more serves reaches x2, and every late serve in it adds its 15 before the multiplier is applied. A two-step critter's double tap makes the chain grow faster.

Using the rush

The rush doubles serves made during those 5 seconds, whenever the need first appeared. Around 28 seconds, 58 seconds and so on, let patient needs build up a little, then spend the rush clearing them with a running chain. Needs also arrive faster during it.

An opening plan

1. The first need is always a hungry critter, at full patience. Serve it and move on.
2. For the first 20 seconds, practise letting naps and snacks go red before serving. Patience is at its most generous here.
3. From 18 seconds, plasters appear. Treat every plaster as urgent: even at the start it has only 4.5 seconds, and it only gets shorter.

Mid and late game

• After 50 seconds, needs arrive every 0.6 to 0.7 seconds, so bursts form on their own. Focus on not missing.
• A fresh plaster has less time than any other fresh need, so answer it first unless another ring is closer to empty.
• Do not tap a critter that has just been served to "keep the rhythm". It wants nothing, and the chain breaks.
• Upset critters sulk for 2.4 seconds. Leave them alone.

Common mistakes

• Serving the newest bubble instead of the emptiest ring.
• Waiting for red on a plaster late in the run, when its whole patience is barely over two seconds.
• Losing a chain to a panic tap on an empty critter.

If you're stuck

If you are losing hearts, drop the just-in-time bonus for a while and always serve the emptiest ring first. Survival builds score through the rushes and the later chains. Once you stop losing hearts before the one-minute mark, start letting the patient needs wait again.