Dirtmaw

How to play

Steer with the mouse, a finger, or the arrow keys, and the worm turns toward where you point. Point further away to swim faster; point at the worm, hold your finger still, or hold Shift to stop. Swim up and out of the ground to leap into the air, and swallow anything you pass on the way. You can only swallow what fits in your mouth: if something has a small ▲ above it, it's too big — for now. Your mouth grows as you eat. Health comes back only underground, and only so far, so you heal by diving and top up by eating. Press Lunge (Space, a click, or the button) for a burst of speed; lunge just before you breach and you leap much higher. It's an eat and grow game where the ground is your hiding place.

Grow, get noticed, get chased

Each stage has four size checkpoints. Reach one and the game freezes to offer you a choice of three: a boost for this run, or one of the abilities you've researched, arriving at the level you've trained it to. Every checkpoint also raises the heat. First a constable with a whistle, then police cars and a helicopter, then the army, then jets and things nobody should have built. Reach the fourth checkpoint and the stage is eaten — then Endless opens for it, with two more checkpoints and no ceiling.

Between runs

You will get squashed, often. Every run pays Grit, even a short one. Spend it on the Body shelf — speed, health, appetite and four more, always for sale — or at the Stall, which offers three random pieces of research after every run: wings, spit, rock tosses, shockwaves. Researched abilities go into a tree you can level up, and you choose which tiers of a chain stay in the pool. The Stall keeps its three offers until your next run ends, so reloading the page won't reroll them. Nothing costs money. Grit is earned by playing, and only by playing.

The six stages

• The Green — a village green, a duck pond, and constables.
• Hay Country — fields, flocks, barns, and a police helicopter.
• Maple Drive — suburban lawns, parked cars, and the first soldiers.
• Downtown — buses, shops, office blocks, and the army with tanks.
• The Airfield — hangars and parked planes, with gunships and jets overhead.
• The Institute — labs and domes, drill drones, and things fired into the soil.

Tips

• Dive to heal. Underground is the only place your health comes back.
• Lunge, then breach. The burst carries you much higher.
• Eat the little things between the big ones — they add up.
• A ring on the ground never moves. Swim out of it.
• Spend your first Grit on Swift Swim and Thick Hide.

FAQ

What is Dirtmaw?

A free browser game where you play a worm under a town. You swim through the soil, leap out to swallow whatever you're big enough to eat, and grow — while the town sends more and more to stop you.

Why did I die so quickly?

You're meant to, at first. A small worm is slow and fragile. Every run pays Grit, even a short one, and Grit buys permanent upgrades. The next run goes further.

What can I eat?

Anything that fits in your mouth. Your mouth grows as you do. If something has a small ▲ above it, it's too big — for now.

How do I get wings?

Abilities are found at the Stall, which offers three random pieces of research after every run. Once you've researched one, it can turn up as a pick when you reach a size checkpoint.

Why isn't the upgrade I want in the Stall?

The Stall is random and redraws after every run. The Body upgrades are always for sale.

Is my progress saved?

Yes, in your browser — including a run in progress. There's no account and nothing to sign up for.

Does anything cost money?

No. There are no purchases. Grit is earned by playing, and only by playing.

Can I play on my phone?

Yes. Drag to steer and tap the Lunge button. It works in portrait and landscape.

Is it suitable for children?

It's a cartoon: things are swallowed whole, and there is no blood or gore. Whether it suits your child is your call.