Rules
How to Play Colony Flow
Colony Flow is a stacking puzzle. A picture is built from layers of colored number tiles, and a line of ants carries them away one batch at a time. The trick is never the tapping — it is the order you choose the layers in.
The Core Rules
These ideas explain every level. If you get stuck, come back to them in this order.
Tap a cube to send ants
Each level shows a pixel picture with a stack of numbered cubes below it. Tap a cube and its ants march out to carry away every matching pixel block they can reach.
The number is how many ants it holds
A cube showing 12 carries 12 ants. It only disappears once all of them have finished — until then it keeps sitting in a slot, which is exactly why the queue jams.
Only five slots — fill them and you lose
The queue holds five cubes. If all five are stuck with no reachable targets left, the level fails. Never start a colour you cannot finish.
Ants path like a matching game
Ants do not need the outermost block — if a clear straight route exists between the cube and a matching pixel block, they take it. That is the freedom you plan around.
The Order That Works
Most wasted taps come from hitting whatever color is visible first instead of reading the stack. Use this routine:
Read the layers before you tap anything
Look at the picture as an onion. The outermost outline color is on top; the center color is underneath. Your first taps must always go to the outer layer, no matter how tempting the middle looks.
Clear one color at a time
When a color is exposed, tap all of its tiles in one batch. Mixing colors fills the 5-slot queue and can block it, so finish the current layer before you switch.
Let the queue breathe
The ants carry five tiles at once. Tap a batch, watch the ants walk it out, then tap the next batch. Double-tapping the same number repeatedly usually keeps the queue flowing.
Hit 2x once the outer ring is gone
After the outer layer clears, the level drops to faster colors. Tap the speed-up button and the remaining body of the picture melts much faster.
Finish the center last
The central tiles are always the last layer. When only a small colored cluster remains, those are the inner tiles you were working toward the whole time.
What Changes as Levels Get Harder
Early levels use only a few colors, so the layer order is obvious and the queue never fills. As you advance, the pictures gain more colors and tighter stacks, and outer layers split into several batches that have to be cleared before the next color is exposed.
The rule itself never changes — outer layer first — but reading which color is on top gets harder, which is where watching a short walkthrough for the tricky levels pays off.
For the deeper techniques, read Colony Flow tips and strategy. To see it applied, open any level from the full level index.
How to Play Colony Flow — FAQ
What is the goal of Colony Flow?
Each level shows a picture made of stacked colored number tiles. Ants sit in a 5-slot queue. You tap tiles at the bottom to send the ants out and carry every tile away. Clear the whole picture to finish.
Why can’t I tap the inner color first?
The picture is stacked in layers. An inner tile is covered by the outer layer on top of it, so the ants cannot reach it yet. Always remove the color that is sitting on top first — work from the outside inward.
What does the 5-slot queue do?
The queue holds up to five tiles before the ants go. If you keep adding the same color they keep carrying that color; if you mix colors the queue can fill up and block you. Plan the batch before you tap.
How do I speed the ants up?
Tap the 2x speed button in the top-right corner. A "Use Speed Up" prompt pops up on many levels once the outer layer is gone — turn it on and the colony moves twice as fast.
Is there a way to tell which color comes next?
Look at which color is currently exposed. If a color still has another layer covering it, its tiles will be greyed out or buried. Clear the visible outer layer first and the next color underneath becomes tappable.
Ready to clear your first picture?
Start with Level 1 — it is a short tutorial level with three colors and the whole layer idea on screen at once.