Potion Sort A free water sort puzzle with glowing potions
Pour glowing potions between flasks until each holds one colour, then brew the recipe in order for the third star.
About Potion Sort
Potion Sort is a free online colour sorting puzzle you can play in your browser on a phone, tablet or computer. A walnut shelf in a candle-lit apothecary holds glass flasks filled with layers of glowing potion. Tap a flask to lift it, then tap another to pour: the top colour flows across as far as it fits, but only onto the same colour or into an empty flask. When a flask holds four layers of one potion it corks itself with a pop, and its ingredient flies into the bubbling cauldron.
The twist is the recipe card that hangs above the shelf. It lists three to five potions in order. Cork them in that order and each one earns a bonus, the cauldron flares, and finishing the card earns the third star. Cork a recipe potion too early and the order is broken, so the best players hold a finished flask back until its turn comes. Every pour asks a small question: which colour to gather first, which empty flask to keep free, and whether to finish a potion now or later.
The Journey has 120 hand-checked levels across six workshops: the Herb Loft, the Ember Still, the Tide Cellar, the Moon Kiln, the Frost Vault and the Star Athenaeum. Shelves grow from two colours to twelve, and from level 12 some bottom layers are murky: you only see their colour when they reach the top. Later shelves trade an empty flask for a small two-layer vial, and every tenth level is a gentler relief shelf. Every level is proven solvable by a solver before it ships, and the recipe can always be brewed in order. After level 120, endless brews keep going with the same rules, and a new daily brew arrives every day for everyone, scored by the fewest moves.
Each level is rated with up to three stars: one for sorting every flask, one for finishing within par, and one for brewing the recipe in order. Stars unlock new glass styles, from brass to starlight.
Tips: keep one flask empty as long as you can, because it is your only free space. Gather the colour with the most layers on top first. Look at the recipe before you pour and leave its later potions one layer short until their turn. Undo is free and unlimited, and the hint button shows a good next pour when you are stuck. A level takes one to four minutes, the game loads instantly with no download, works with touch, mouse or keyboard, and saves your progress automatically.
How to play
Tap a flask to lift it, then tap another flask to pour its top colour into it. You can pour onto the same colour or into an empty flask, as far as it fits. Four layers of one colour cork the flask. Sort every flask to win; brew the recipe card's potions in order for the third star. With a mouse you can also drag a flask onto another. On a keyboard, move between flasks with the arrow keys or WASD, lift and pour with Enter or Space, undo with U or Ctrl+Z, restart with R and ask for a hint with H. P or Esc pauses and M mutes.
Controls and devices
- Controls: Touch, Mouse, Keyboard
- Works on: phones, tablets and computers
- Screen: portrait orientation
- Price: free, no download or sign-up
FAQ
- Is every level solvable?
- Yes. Every Journey level, daily brew and endless brew is checked by a solver before you play it, including a line that brews the recipe in order, so all three stars are always possible.
- How do the three stars work?
- One star for sorting every flask, one for finishing in par moves or fewer, and one for corking the recipe card's potions in its order. Undone pours still count as moves.
- What are murky layers?
- From level 12, some bottom layers are hidden under a dark swirl with a question mark. A murky layer shows its colour when it becomes the top of its flask, or when the flask corks.
- What is the extra flask?
- Once per level you can watch an ad for an extra empty flask that holds four layers, like the others. It makes a hard shelf easier, but a level finished with it can earn at most two stars.
- Does my progress save?
- Yes. Your stars, best scores, daily streak and the level you are in the middle of are saved on this device, and to your account when you're signed in.
Credits
- Game design, code and sound: Playora Games
- Generated art: UI skin, ingredient icons, props, background, thumbnails: Codex CLI image tool (OpenAI)