Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Easier to teach
High replayability
Low interaction
Scales well
Light strategy
More strategic control
How it plays
How does it play?
Collect microscopic algae and arrange their jewel-like shapes into a Victorian scientific mosaic judged for color, variety, and symmetry.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Read the full game description
Diatoms is a tile-placement puzzle inspired by the ornate microscope slides assembled by Victorian naturalists. Players move along a ribbon of water tiles, collect tiny diatom tiles in different shapes and colors, and compose them on personal glass-slide boards. Public judges reward specific patterns such as matched colors, varied forms, and symmetry, while the arrangement itself remains open-ended and tactile. Every choice balances the sample that is easiest to collect now against the space and scoring relationships it will create later. Solo commissions turn the same system into a sequence of focused spatial challenges.
