Level 28 · Egg Tart

Egg Tart is level 28 of Crumb Colony. The pixel picture has 668 blocks in 8 colors, the tray holds 44 ant boxes, and the difficulty is Normal.

Difficulty

Normal

Pacing

Hard opening

Blocks

668

Colors

8

Ant boxes

44

Mechanics

2 golden key(s) · Ice · Number blocks · Mystery boxes

Like this pixel picture? BitBead can turn it into a printable fuse bead pattern.

Play level 28

About the dish

A Portuguese-style egg tart: a flaky pastry shell with a custard filling caramelized in dark spots on top.

How the picture comes apart

From the frame to the center the picture is 13 layers deep. The outer ring is mostly brown and mint, the middle band is mostly yellow and brown, and the core is mostly red and yellow. Ants can only reach the next layer once the one around it is gone, so the core colors are the last to become useful.

By block count the biggest colors are yellow, brown and mint.

The 2 golden key(s) are buried in the outer ring of the picture, so the locks they open come into play early.

1 number block(s) take 24 bites in total.

13% of the blocks are frozen and take two bites each.

Reading the tray

The tray starts with 44 boxes in 4 columns. At the start 2 of the 4 front boxes can bite right away: orange (has to wait), brown (has to wait), tan (bites now) and mint (bites now).

Locked boxes start in column 3, row 4 and column 3, row 7.

2 mystery box(es) only show their color when they reach the front.

How the verified run plays out

The solution further down was played to the end in the real game, with ants walking and real timing. It takes 44 taps. The chart shows how many boxes were still parked in the 5 slots, waiting for their color, just before each tap.

Opening (taps 1–17): 34% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 2 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Middle (taps 18–32): 33% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 3 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

Ending (taps 33–44): 33% of the blocks are eaten, with up to 1 of the 5 slots holding a box that is waiting.

A key comes out before tap 8. A key comes out before tap 16.

How hard is it?

Two test players attempted this level many times: a cautious one that only sends colors it can use right away cleared it 80% of the time, and a look-ahead one that tries each option before committing cleared it 100% of the time. Most of their failed attempts jammed in the opening.

Strategy

Check the colors of the first three boxes in each column and compare them with the colors exposed on the outer ring of the picture. Always keep one slot free to catch a color that can't be eaten yet.

The opening is the hardest part here: the outer ring needs several colors at once and the front rows are scrambled. Only send colors that can bite right away during the first taps, even if it feels slow.

Keys are buried in the picture and must be dug out to open the locks in the tray. Prioritize colors that eat around the keys so locked boxes don't block the front row for long.

Ice blocks take two bites, so one block uses two ants. Icy areas are eaten slowly and the matching boxes stay in their slots a little longer.

Number blocks take many bites; the number is how many remain. They can be bitten as soon as any side is exposed, and several boxes of that color can work on one at once.

Mystery boxes show their color only when they reach the front. When you see one coming, don't fill every slot; leave room for it.

Locks and golden keys · Ice blocks · Number blocks · Difficulty curves

Step-by-step solution

This order of taps is verified to clear the level. Columns are numbered 1–4 from the left; after each tap, wait until the ants are out before the next one. Two boxes shown together are a chained pair taken in one tap.

Level 28 questions