Chain Reaction
Build the machine, hit Run, and let physics carry the ball home — gently.
How to play
Place ramps, dominoes and fans to guide a ball into the goal when you press Run. The catch: the ball must arrive with energy under the level's cap, so steep, slamming routes fail — efficient, gentle routing wins.
- Pick a tool and place it: draw a ramp between two points, drop dominoes or fans
- Press Run to simulate; Undo, Clear or start a New level anytime
- Land the ball in the goal under the energy cap to clear it
- Shallow ramps bleed speed; steep drops add too much energy
Game modes
- Daily puzzle — the same level for everyone today
- Practice — fresh levels you can advance through
Controls
- Desktop: click two points to draw a ramp; click to drop a domino or fan; click Run
- Phone & tablet: tap to draw and place pieces, then tap Run
Tips & strategy
- Trade height for length — a longer, shallower path sheds energy before the goal
- Use fans to redirect without adding the speed a drop would
- Test early and often with Run, then Undo the pieces that overshoot the cap
What you'll learn
Chain Reaction builds physics intuition for energy by having you design contraptions that conserve and shed energy to reach a goal.
- Skills: energy conservation, kinetic and potential energy, cause and effect, physics problem-solving
- Best for: roughly grades 7–12 (ages 12+)
- For parents & teachers: makes energy transfer something you engineer, not just read about.
About Chain Reaction
Chain Reaction is a contraption-building physics puzzle about conserving and shedding energy. It's an original, free browser game built in-house for PlayPendium.
A free, original browser game on PlayPendium — no download, no install. Browse all games →