Fruit Cascade is a match-three where the cascade is the game. A single match of three is worth very little; a chain that keeps going is worth several times as much. This page covers what each shape leaves behind, how the multiplier climbs, and why passing the target early is not the end of a level.
Objective
Swap two neighbouring fruits to line up three or more of a kind. They clear, what is above falls, and more drops in from the top — which can match again on its own. Hit the target before the moves run out. Some levels also ask you to collect a number of a particular fruit, and both conditions have to be met.
What a big match leaves behind
| Match | Leaves | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Three | — | — |
| Four in a row | Row Clearer | Takes out its whole row |
| Four in a column | Column Clearer | Takes out its whole column |
| An L or a T | Burst | Clears the nine squares around it |
| Five in a line | Rainbow | Takes every fruit of one kind |
Specials sit on the board as ordinary fruit with a marking, so they can be matched again like anything else — and when one is caught in a clear it goes off, which can set off the next. Chains of specials are the biggest scores in the game.
Two rules make them worth saving:
- Two specials swapped together both go off, wherever they are.
- A rainbow swapped with any fruit takes every fruit of that kind, even though the swap makes no match of its own. Two rainbows together clear the board.
An L or a T counts as one five-fruit match rather than two threes, because runs that share a cell are merged into a single shape before anything is scored. That is why a corner shape earns you a burst.
Scoring
60 a fruit, times the chain multiplier — 1×, then 1.5×, 2×, 2.5× and on, capped at 4× — plus 150 for each special created.
Stars are score thresholds. The first is the target you have to beat; the second and third sit well above it, so three stars needs real chaining rather than just finishing. Crucially, a level always runs its full allowance of moves, so passing the target early does not stop you going for a better score.
The thresholds were set by measurement rather than guesswork: an automated player played every level a dozen times, the target was placed near 60% of a typical run, and the top star above the average. They deliberately do not climb steadily from level to level — a board with five fruit types cascades far more freely than one with six, so an early level can out-score a later one. What gets harder is the target relative to what the board will actually give up.
Controls
| Action | How |
|---|---|
| Swap | Click two neighbours, or drag one into the other |
| Pause | Esc |
| Restart the level | R |
After six seconds of no input, the board points out a move it can see.
Strategy
- Play the bottom of the board. A clear down there drops more fruit through more rows and starts longer chains than the same match made near the top.
- Save specials and set two off next to each other. That is where the biggest scores are.
- Keep going after you pass the target. The level runs all its moves anyway, and the second and third stars sit well above the first.
- On a collect level, take the asked-for fruit when the choice is close — both conditions have to be met, so score alone will not finish it.
- A board with no legal move reshuffles for free: no move spent, no score lost.
Questions
How do I get three stars?
Chain. The top star sits above what a tidy, chain-free run produces, so it needs cascades and paired specials rather than more matches.
Why did the level continue after I hit the target?
By design. Levels always run their full moves so the second and third stars are reachable — an earlier version ended on the target and made them impossible.
What is the best special?
A rainbow paired with another special. On its own it takes one fruit type; combined, it can take most of the board.
Do the targets get harder every level?
Not steadily, and that is deliberate. Boards with fewer fruit types cascade more freely, so raw scores vary. What tightens is the target relative to the board.
Other guides
- Merge Numbers — the merge-once rule and corner strategy
- Pixel Invaders — auto-fire, tiny hitboxes and flagships
- Wingbeat — why you should aim low in the gap
- All guides