Color Lines (Lines 98)
Move the balls to make lines of five and clear the board.
How to play Color Lines
Color Lines is a classic puzzle game, famous on old Windows PCs as Lines 98. You play on a 9×9 board with balls in seven colours. Every time you move without making a line, three new balls drop onto the board. Your job is to keep the board from filling up for as long as you can.
Goal
Line up five or more balls of the same colour in a row: across, down or on either diagonal. The line disappears and you score points. Score as much as you can before the board is full.
Turn by turn
- Click or tap a ball to pick it. It starts to jump.
- Click an empty square. The ball rolls there if there is a free path. Balls move up, down, left and right, never through other balls, and never diagonally.
- If there is no path, you hear a buzz and nothing moves. Pick another square or another ball.
- If your move makes a line of five or more, those balls vanish and no new balls appear this turn.
- If it does not, three new balls drop in. Their colours are shown in the Next box above the board. Turn on Show where they drop to see the exact squares.
Scoring
Longer lines are worth much more: 5 balls give 10 points, 6 give 18, 7 give 28, 8 give 40 and 9 give 54. Two lines made with one move count as one big group. New balls that happen to land in a line also clear and score.
End of the game
The game ends when every square is full. You can undo your last move once, and your game is saved if you close the tab. Your best score is kept in this browser. Like quiet puzzles with colours? Try SameGame or 2048.
Strategy tips
- Keep the middle open. Balls in the centre block many paths. Build your lines along the edges and keep a wide open area in the middle.
- Work on a few lines at once. Have two or three half-built lines of different colours. Then most new balls have somewhere useful to go.
- Watch the Next box. If the next drop has two reds, a red line with a gap may be filled for free, or blocked. Plan one move ahead.
- Aim for six or more. One line of six is worth almost twice a line of five. When the board is calm, extend a line before you close it.
- Do not wall yourself in. Before you move, check that the ball you will need next still has a path. A single ball can cut the board in two.
- Use undo wisely. You get one undo per move. Use it to take back a move that let new balls block a key path.
Color Lines (Lines 98) FAQ
Is this the same as Lines 98?
Yes, it plays like the classic Lines 98: a 9×9 board, seven colours, three new balls after each move and lines of five or more to clear. The graphics are new, the rules are the same.
Why can my ball not move to that square?
A ball needs a free path of empty squares, moving up, down, left or right. If other balls fence the square off, there is no path and the move is not allowed.
Do diagonal lines count?
Yes. Five or more balls of one colour in a row count in all four directions: across, down and both diagonals. Balls still move only in straight steps, not diagonally.
Is my game saved?
Yes. Your game is saved in this browser after every move, so you can close the tab and continue later. Your best score is saved too.
