Fernhawk GamesIn Duck Crossing a small duckling tries to hop as far up the garden as it can. The garden is made of rows. Some rows are safe grass, some are paths with lawnmowers and wheelbarrows rolling along, and some are streams that you cross by hopping on lily pads. Your score is how far you get.
How to play
The duckling moves one square at a time.
- On a phone or tablet: tap the up arrow, or swipe in the direction you want to hop. A plain tap on the field hops up. Big buttons are under the field for all four directions.
- On a computer: press the arrow keys or W, A, S and D.
The game does not start until you make your first hop.
Wait for a gap on the garden paths. Lawnmowers and wheelbarrows are not friendly, and touching one costs you a try. On a stream you must hop onto a lily pad. The pad carries you along, so hop on, up or sideways, before it floats off the edge of the screen. Falling into the water also costs a try.
Star coins on the grass score 5 each. A heart gives you an extra try. Do not wait too long in one place: the view moves on slowly by itself, so waiting for ever is not an option.
When your tries run out, the game ends and shows how many rows you reached.
The levels
- Easy: slow lawnmowers, wide gaps and big lily pads. You get 5 tries.
- Medium: steady traffic and smaller lily pads. You get 4 tries.
- Hard: fast traffic, with longer roads and wider streams. You get 3 tries.
- Expert: very fast mowers, tiny lily pads, and the screen moves on more quickly. You get 3 tries.
On every level the traffic speeds up a little as you climb, up to a limit, so later rows are busier than the first ones.
Today's game
There is a Medium garden each day, with the same rows for everyone. If you leave in the middle, your game is saved on this device.
Tips
- Grass is always safe. Stop there, look at the next road, and hop the moment a gap is coming.
- Look at the traffic before you leave the grass, not after. Wait for a gap that is wide enough, rather than squeezing through a small one.
- Watch the movement on a path for a few seconds. Every lane has its own speed, and the pattern repeats.
- On a stream, choose the lily pad that will be next to you when you land. Pads move, so aim for where one will be, not where it is.
- Once on a pad, do not stay too long. It keeps drifting towards the edge of the screen, so hop on before it carries you out.
- Do not go for every coin. A coin is only 5 points, and a risky hop can cost you far more.
- Use the hearts. When you see one on a safe patch of grass, it is worth a short detour to take it.
Questions
Can the duckling hop sideways and backwards? Yes. You have four directions. But the score counts how far up the garden you got.
Why does the view keep moving? It creeps forward slowly so that waiting in one spot for ever is not possible. Keep moving up the garden.
What does a heart do? It gives you an extra try.
Does the game wait for me? It waits for your first hop. After that, it keeps going.