Introduction to Boulderland

Even though this main idea sounds very simple, Boulderland is a very complex and variable game. In fact, in most of the levels the diamonds are not just lying around, but have to be located, dug out or even produced. And of course, Boulderland is full of dangers and obstacles.

Nevertheless, Boulderland is easy to learn. Just try to play some of the first levels or look at some of the replays available. As you see there, you are moving a small guy through the level. With every step you are digging through the ground, creating tunnels and caves. The boulders lying around are falling down, whenever nothing is below. Then they are dangerous, since they kill every being underneath. On your way through the cave you will meet hostile ghosts and butterflies, that you should not touch. You can also defeat those beasts, by dropping boulders or other items on them. Especially the butterflies are important, since they transform to diamonds when killed. Other features of the game are walls, bombs, worms and amoebas.

Elements of the Boulderland

   Player
This is you in Boulderland. Use the cursor keys to move the guy through his underground realm.

    Earth
Those fields can easily be dug away and serve to create tunnels.

    Gems
Collect as many gems as you can, and then try to reach the exit. But be careful: If a gem hits you from above, you could be killed.

   Boulders
Boulders obey the law of gravity. They fall down if there is nothing below. Falling boulders are dangerous, since they kill everything on its way. You can shift single boulders and move them to where they are needed.

    Blocks
Blocks are similar to boulders, but they are indestructible. And they can be stacked without rolling off.

    Brick walls
These walls can be destroyed by creating an explosion next to it.

  Growing walls
Some walls look like brick walls, but grow if there is space. So watch out not to let them block your way!

    Magic walls
These walls, too, look like normal brick walls, but they can be used to convert boulders to diamonds. Drop a boulder on a magic wall. If there is an empty field below it, the boulder will fall through as a gem. Unfortunately this only works for a short time and only once. Diamonds falling through a magic wall are transformed to boulders. If the field below a magic wall is occupied, the boulder or gem will not appear on the other side, but vanish.

    Slime
Slime is similar to magic walls. Boulders and gems lying on top of it are falling through. As a difference to magic walls, the items do not have to fall on it from above and do not vanish, if the field below is not empty.

    Hard walls
Those walls usually make the edge of the level and are absolutely solid.

    Exits
Exits look like hard walls, until you managed to collect enough gems. Then they are open and blink.

    Ghosts
Ghosts are dangerous, since their touch is deadly. In any case you must avoid to step into a field directly adjacent to a ghost. The experienced player will fortunately be able to estimate the path, a ghost moves on. And you can kill a ghost by throwing boulders or bombs on it.

    Butterflies
Similar to ghosts, butterflies should not be approached too close. But they are much more useful than ghosts, since they transform to up to nine diamonds, when killed. Use this attribute to create the gems required.

    Amoeba
In some levels you will find an amoeba. Even though it might consist of many single fields, it is only one creature. It is a (mostly) harmless and very useful creature, that grows permanently. In case it is completely surrounded by walls or other hard elements, it turns to pure diamonds! If - on the other hand - the amoeba becomes too big, it turns too stone and will leave a large pile of boulders behind. The certainly most important attribute of the amoeba is that it kills butterflies and ghosts touching it. Thus it can be used to provide a permanent production of gems.

   Worms
Worms consist of a head and a tail. They move slowly and prefer to follow you. This makes them more dangerous than ghosts, but at the same time useful, since you might be able to "remote control" a worm by moving in the direction desired. To kill a worm you need to hit his head. The tail itself is totally harmless.

    Bubbles
Bubbles are slowly moving upwards, if there is room. You can shift them like boulders and even more than one at a time. Some bubbles burst after some moments, but most of them remain until someone decides to have them removed. To burst a bubble, use the ctrl key together with the direction to the bubble.

    Bombs
Bombs can be collected and then used on any empty fields. To drop a bomb hold the ctrl key down and select the desired direction of dropping it. But be careful to be far off when the bomb explodes. Bombs are especially useful to remove obstacles, like brick walls and boulders.

    Shields
In some levels you can collect a shield which makes you immortal for several seconds. As a side-effect, your moves become a bit uncoordinated, too...

The game screen

During the game the lower bar displays some status indicators. The two numbers on the left border show the number of diamonds collected and required. With every diamond collected, the first number increases by one. If you manage to get at least the required amount of gems, the exit door will open and you are ready to leave the level. The actual score is shown in the center of the lower bar. For every diamond collected, a certain bonus is added to the score. Apart from that, the only way to increase the score is to be quick: The number of seconds remaining after solving a level is added to the score. A bonus life is granted every 1000 points. The left part of the status bar displays the number of bombs you have currently available. Even though this display stops at the number of six, you are still able to carry as many bombs as you can get.