Scrap Tug tips: merge smarter and heave on the beat

Six country fairs. One chain. A mud pit in the middle. Scrap Tug is a merge game and a tug of war in one, and you can play it free in your browser with no download.

Merge, then pull

Each level starts on your board. Tap + MACHINE to buy a machine, then drag it onto an identical one to merge them into something bigger. A Cart becomes a Buggy, a Buggy becomes a Pickup, and so on up twelve tiers, from the humble Cart to The Showstopper. Every merge roughly doubles the power.

When you're ready, hit PULL!. Now you tap. A ring pulses on a steady beat. Tap on the mark for a HEAVE!, a big pull that grows with your streak. Drag the flag over your line and the rival skids into the mud. Lose, and you still take home some tickets and can retry with the same board.

Rhythm beats speed

This is the big one. Mashing the screen feels strong, but it's worth less than a single tap off the beat, and it never builds a streak. Watch the ring, tap on the mark and keep the streak alive. At a streak of 8, the fans throw grip sand.

Six more tips

1. Read the verdict before you pull. "STRONGER!" means go. "TOUGH! TAP HARD" means your taps decide it. "MERGE UP!" means build first.
2. Merge before you buy. Each + MACHINE costs more than the last one in the same level.
3. Front row grips, back row pulls. From level 13, big machines up front help against anchors, slick mud and drift. Against teams with a fast start, put them at the back.
4. Bring the right booster. Grip Sand helps against slicks and anchors. Hot Pie helps against a sprint start.
5. Wait for the gold ring. When you're losing, a GOLD RING heave can turn the whole pull around.
6. Win clean. Win inside 22 seconds, before sudden death, for an extra rosette. In sudden death, the bigger board wins.

Six stops on the tour

You start at the County Fair Mud Pit against the Haybale Hooligans. Then come the River Ford Pull, where the current drifts the flag, the Quarry Ledge Pull, the Night Carnival, the Tractor-Pull Arena (watch the chain strain) and the Beach Tug Festival with its tide. Every tenth level is a boss machine, from Old Horns all the way to The Tugboat at level 60. After that, the Grand Tour mixes every stop together.

Along the way you'll sign crew like Stumpy Gus and Mama Boulder, fill prize hampers with rosettes, and spend horseshoes at the fair shop.

Count it out: ring, ring, HEAVE. The rival is mashing. You are not.

Keep pulling

For more merging, see the Merge shelf. For more mud and shoving, try Scrap Rush, and to fix what's left afterwards, open the garage in Scrap Pit.