About Sumspill
Digit tiles fall into a well and a target number sits above it. Pick a group of tiles that touch each other and add to exactly the target, and they clear — everything above them drops into the hole and the target rerolls to something harder. You can never go over: a tile that would take you past the target is refused and the game shows you the sum, so every rejection teaches the arithmetic instead of hiding it. Bigger groups pay far more than small ones, so the greedy three-tile answer that clears instantly is nearly always the wrong one. The target is never invented — it is read off the tiles actually sitting in the well, so it is always findable and never free.
How to play
- Digit tiles from 1 to 9 fall into a well seven columns wide and eight tall, and a target number sits above it.
- Tap or click tiles that touch side by side or above and below, not diagonally, so their sum hits the target exactly.
- The group clears the moment it matches. Tiles above drop down and a new target appears.
- Every 50 seconds tiles fall faster and targets grow. A tile landing on a full column ends the run.
Tips
- Build big, not fast. A clear pays the target times a size multiplier: ×1 for three tiles, ×2.4 for five, ×3.4 for six and ×9.4 for ten or more. A target of 21 made from six tiles pays 71 instead of 21.
- Six tiles earn a Reroll. You start with two Rerolls (R or the Reroll button), each swapping the target for another that is on the board. Any clear of six or more tiles gives one back, up to five.
- Watch the dimmed tiles. Tiles that would push your sum past the target, or that do not touch your group, are dimmed. Tapping a picked tile takes it back along with every tile picked after it.
- Keep the chain going. Each clear within ten seconds of the last adds ×0.2 to the next one, up to ×3. A quick small clear can protect a chain while you plan a larger group.
- Do not drain the well. Targets are read from the groups on the board, so a nearly empty well only offers small targets, which pay less. Tiles also refill much faster when the well is thin.
Read the full Sumspill guide (5 min read)
From the developer
Sumspill is the arithmetic sibling of Wordfall, built on 10 September on the same falling well: tiles drop and stack, and instead of spelling a word you pick tiles that touch each other and add up to the target. It is plain JavaScript on one canvas.
A number target brings a problem a dictionary does not have: the game picks the target, so it could ask for something impossible. My rule, the same as in Prism Sort, is never to ship a board that cannot be finished. So the target is never invented. It is read off the tiles actually in the well: the game lists every group of touching tiles, records which sums they can reach and one group that reaches each, and then picks a sum that needs several tiles, has more than one answer, and sits near the level's ideal.
Overshooting is impossible, because tiles that would go over are dimmed before you tap them, and tapping one shows the sum, such as 9 + 6 = 15, over 14. Scoring rises steeply with the number of tiles, so a target of 21 pays 21 in three tiles and 71 in six. The tiles and buttons are from Hyper Casual UI Pack by Smashy Tech.
Son Hoang, who made Sumspill
Update history
- Added music: Winter Spirits - Whispering Trees from Phat Phrog Studio's Free RPG Music Collection.
- The game-over line no longer says '0 short of your best' after a first run or a tie.
- Removed the 'Watch a video' buttons, which could never pay out here; Rerolls stay free, one back for every clear of six or more tiles.
- Glossy number tiles, themed buttons, up to three result stars and a medal.
- Real loading bar; on a phone held sideways the target moves beside the well so the tiles stay large enough to tap.
- Text now scales with the screen; on a laptop the smallest labels had been 8 pixels.
- First version: tap touching tiles that add up to the target to clear them before the well overflows.
Questions
Is every target possible?
Yes. The game never invents a target. It scans every connected group of up to six tiles in the well and picks a sum with at least three different answers, so there is always a way to reach it.
Does Sumspill save my progress?
It saves your best score, best single clear, biggest group, lifetime clears and runs, today's stats, your daily streak and the sound setting in this browser, updated after every clear. A run in progress cannot be resumed.
Can I play on a phone or without a mouse?
Yes. On a touch screen, tap tiles and use the Clear and Reroll buttons under the well. On a keyboard, arrow keys move a cursor, Enter picks, Backspace takes one back and Esc pauses.
Does it get harder?
Yes. Each speed step makes tiles fall about 12% faster and pushes targets higher, from around 14 at first towards 31, with smaller answers ruled out. The run is endless until the well fills.
