Color Lines: Microbes is a logic-puzzle game based on the classic 1992 Color Lines. It features the same matching item element, but with the balls reimagined as microbes. The player's only goal is to remove as many microbes as possible for as long as possible from a two-tone, light-blue checkerboard.
The game starts by adding only a few microbes to the board. To remove these microbes, the player must align five identical ones on a column, a row or diagonally. They perform this task by first selecting a microbe and then an empty square.
That said, the game doesn't allow the player to move microbes across blocked paths. A microbe can only move when there is a clear horizontal or vertical path to a new location.
Color Lines: Microbes provides three time-saving tools. It displays a preview of the next microbes that will appear on the board in cell-culture dishes in the lower-right area. It places non-blocking red spores on paths to indicate where future microbes will appear during a turn. The player can direct microbes through or to spore spaces. The game also offers an Undo Move button in the lower-right area below the cell-culture dishes. The player can undo only one move at a time with it.
The player can review their position on a global leaderboard by selecting the paper to the left of the board. They can use buttons under this list to adjust the music and volume settings.