Salt Bite: level goals, steals and how the star score adds up

Salt Bite is a top-down arcade game: you steer a little salt-eater around the board, nibble crystals and grow a bit with every bite. Steer with the on-screen stick or the arrow keys (WASD works too), and press Dash for a short hop in the direction you are heading; it recharges in about a second. You can play it in your browser.

What each bite is worth

A crystal gives 10 points, a golden one 22. On top of that you get your current combo, up to +20, so a long run of bites without getting hit is worth far more than the crystals alone. Eating a crystal while a rival is touching it counts as a steal: +8 on the spot, and more at the end.

You have 3 hearts. Any hit resets your combo, and each hazard does something different:

| Hazard | Effect | |---|---| | Chili | −1 heart and −15 points | | Dirty salt | −8 points | | Vinegar | Slows you down for about 1.4 s | | Stone | Stuns you for about half a second |

Slipping past a hazard very closely without touching it counts as a near miss, which pays a little in the final tally.

Rivals and tools

From the third level on, computer-controlled rivals chase the same crystals. They don't all act alike: some go for the biggest or golden crystals, some head for salt far away from you, and some burst forward at speed. Coloured tools also appear on the board, and rivals can take them too:

• Magnet (4.5 s): pulls nearby salt toward you.
• Shove (2.8 s): knocks everyone near you away at once, and each bump into a rival while it lasts pushes them off (+4 points). A rival that shoves you breaks your combo.
• Turbo (3.5 s): about 1.45× speed and a slightly wider bite.

Every tool you pick up adds 6 points.

How the final score and stars work

When a level ends, bonuses are added to what you scored while playing: 12 per steal, 2 per near miss, 3 × your best combo and, only if you completed the goal, 2 per second left on the clock. 1★ and 2★ need that total and at least one heart left. 3★ also needs the goal completed. Reaching the 1★ score with a heart left already unlocks the next level, even if you missed the goal, and finishing the third level of a stage opens the next stage.

Two goals forgive a near miss: on a quota level, eating 70% of the quota before time runs out counts as done, and on a score level 85% of the target is enough.

| Level | Goal | Time | 1★ / 2★ / 3★ | |---|---|---|---| | Kitchen Table 1 | Eat every crystal | 60 s | 60 / 110 / 160 | | Kitchen Table 2 | Eat every crystal | 55 s | 90 / 150 / 210 | | Kitchen Table 3 | Eat every crystal (first rival) | 50 s | 110 / 180 / 250 | | Market Stall 1 | Eat every crystal | 52 s | 130 / 210 / 290 | | Market Stall 2 | Eat 14 crystals | 48 s | 140 / 220 / 300 | | Market Stall 3 | 4 steals | 50 s | 150 / 240 / 330 | | Salt Flats 1 | Eat every crystal | 50 s | 160 / 250 / 350 | | Salt Flats 2 | Survive the clock | 40 s | 180 / 280 / 380 | | Salt Flats 3 | Reach 220 points | 42 s | 200 / 320 / 440 | | Night Fair 1 | Eat every crystal | 46 s | 210 / 330 / 450 | | Night Fair 2 | Eat 18 crystals | 48 s | 230 / 360 / 500 | | Night Fair 3 | 5 steals | 44 s | 250 / 390 / 540 | | Crystal Cave 1 | Eat every crystal | 40 s | 240 / 380 / 520 | | Crystal Cave 2 | Reach 280 points | 46 s | 280 / 420 / 580 | | Crystal Cave 3 | Survive the clock | 50 s | 320 / 480 / 680 |

Quick tips

• Protect your combo. A chili costs 15 points, but the combo it breaks is often worth more.
• On steal levels, go for crystals a rival is about to eat; a dash is the quickest way to get there first.
• On the Salt Flats the wind moves crystals around, so aim where they are drifting to.
• The Night Fair floor is slippery: start turning early, and a stone will bounce you back.
• Survive levels only end when the clock does, so keep eating: crystals and combos are where the stars come from.

More on the Salt Bite page, or start nibbling.