Three's a Crowd

Three's a Crowd is a physics-based puzzle game in which animals fall into a glass well and pile up as real objects. You clear groups of three or more matching animals that touch, then use the gaps and the pile’s collapse to set up further clears. Each round lasts 28 seconds and has a score target; missing it ends the run.

Clear the pile

Animals roll, wedge and settle without snapping to a grid. Bombs and blocks also fall into the well, but cannot be matched. Clicking a bomb costs a life, and you start with one; blocks take up space. Hazards caught in a clear are removed and award a defuse bonus. Missing a clear costs some time, so choosing which animals to match—and which hazards to catch in the clear—is central to play.

Choose how far to go

Clearing round ten wins the game, and you can bank that win. You can instead continue into bonus rounds, where targets keep rising and the payout grows with each round. The entire pot is at stake: clear the next round to increase it, or fail and lose it all. After every bonus round, you choose whether to bank or continue.

Upgrade between rounds

Coins earned in a round buy upgrades between rounds. These last for the current run and then disappear. Options include widening what counts as touching, making pairs count as a match, clearing neighbouring colours, buying back time and defusing more bombs.

Upgrade between runs

Tokens buy permanent upgrades between runs, including more lives, longer rounds, a bigger shop and a score head start. You can respec for free at any time. Menagerie is a permanent upgrade that makes the game harder by adding another animal to the pool, reducing the odds of each clear. An achievement is awarded for beating the game with all Menagerie upgrades in play; there is no other reward for doing so.

Additional features

• 36 achievements, from clearing your first group to longer-term challenges
• Mouse-only controls with one button and no keyboard input
• Colourblind mode gives each animal a distinct shape
• Fullscreen and windowed modes, with the game remembering your choice