The Goal: The gloal is to clear each grid of flies. It sounds simple, but each grid is a unique puzzle, and some are very challenging!
The Grids: Each grid is made up of rail segments, like sections of a monorail. Each segment can rotate in place, 90 degrees at a time, in any direction, any number of times. The only exception is a rail that might be "locked" from rotating. A locked rail cannot be unlocked - it is fixed in place for that particular grid.
The Controls: There are three buttons at the bottom of the grid - two that cause the rail segments to rotate left (counterclockwise) or right (clockwise), and one that prods all the flies to take one step forward (if they're able).
The Flies: Flies always start out in fixed positions for each grid, each facing a particular direction. There are three types of flies: weak (green), medium (blue), and strong (red). Stronger flies always chase away weaker ones when they collide. Flies of the same strength chase each other away upon collision.
The Rails: A fly walks on five different shapes of rails. It always continues in a straight path if that rail segment continues in the direction it is currently facing. Immediately after moving forward, if the rail does not continue forward, the fly turns either left or right (for "L"-shaped rails), or turns around completely (for "T"-shaped rails and rail "stubs"). If there is no connecting rail in the direction a fly is facing, it will simply stay in place when prodded forward.
The Items: Some grids contain special items. Power-up (daylight) and power-down (moonlight) will increase or decrease the strength of a fly that hits it. A flyswatter will chase a fly away. Each item can be used only once on a particular grid.
The Game: The game starts out in the Tutorial level. Read the messages at the top of each grid to get some advice on how to play different types of grids. To navigate to other levels, tap the button in the upper left of the display (on the iPad, it will say "Levels"; otherwise, it will display the name of the level you are currently on). Tap the back button (again, in the upper left corner) if necessary to see the list of levels. Each level contains twenty grids. Unlike some games, you can pick any grid to play that you like - there's no need to solve the previous grid first.
The Graphics: Special thanks to Tony Leuenberger for the superb graphics! Tony and I are also collaborating on an upcoming app for all you fellow beer lovers out there.
The Music: As a long-time hobbyist musician, the music is actually one of my own creations. It's turned off by default, but if you're a fan of early-1990s homemade electronic jazz, enjoy! (Turn it on using the "Soundtrack" switch at the top of Help page.) And as a bonus for visiting this page, here's a link to the audio file of the soundtrack: "Blue Skies Ahead".
Other Apps: Check out my other iPhone and iPad apps:
Contact: Questions or comments? Email me at marsjars@gmail.com.