Babelum
The 90s snake rush returns in 3D, and every run teaches you real words.
Babelum is inspired by Montessori-style learning principles and grounded in academic work, but it never forgets the point. You are here to play. The tower is here to challenge you. Collect the words, climb higher, and turn "I should learn a language" into "one more level".
Old-School Pressure. Modern Twist
Remember chasing high scores in classic snake games?
Babelum brings that same "just one more run" tension into 3D diorama levels, then adds a twist: every pickup is a letter, and every clear is a real word in your target language.
Fun and challenge are the focus. You can enjoy it even without the pedagogical side: just pick a language you already know and enjoy it; learning is secondary. We tried to build, above all, a good snake-like game. Each level adds a twist, and challenge is part of the game's identity.
The Hook
Arcade first: tight movement, risky routes, and score-chasing momentum.
Nostalgia energy: classic snake-style pressure, rebuilt for modern 3D gameplay.
Learning that feels like play: spelling, pronunciation, and recall happen while you’re having fun. Forget being passive in Duolingo, test your real language skills!
The Core Loop
Move fast.
Collect letters in order.
Manage a growing tail in shrinking space.
Complete the word before enemies and hazards shut you down.
Climb higher. Beat your best score.
Real Challenge, Real Variety
Each level incrementally introduces a new twist (never the same formula).
Four main level types: action, exploration, runner, story.
Three themes, three cute characters. 30 levels at launch plus 10 different languages each.
Snake-inspired gameplay in compact 3D maps with shortcuts and traps.
Enemies and hazards that force quick decisions, not autopilot.
Power tools like Nitro, Jump, and Shot (by level setup).
Different movement styles: Free, Lane, or Grid-style control.
Game difficulty is identity: we pack a challenge. Bronze score is the easy mode, but gold awaits the brave old-school players.
Learn While You Play (Without Killing the Fun)
Babelum is designed so learning is part of the action loop:
Build words by collecting letters in the correct order.
Hear pronunciation when words are completed.
Track progress in your Word Book: you gotta catch them all!
Practice across 10 languages: English, Portuguese, Japanese, Italian, German, French, Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Hindi.
Japanese supports both Romaji (Latin) and Kana-focused play.
Multiple Play Styles
Regular: classic letter-collection pressure and route mastery.
Runner: listening + fast-reaction gameplay.
Story challenges: context-based language tasks through interactive play.
Exploration: free mode, discover the level's secrets.
For 90s Competitors and Modern Learners
Whether you want to:
Relive the old-school score-chasing feeling,
Compete for cleaner runs and better times,
Or level up your language skills through gameplay,
Babelum is built for that exact overlap.
Future Plans
For those who just want pure snake gameplay, we will release an Arcade mode (no language acquisition, old-school formula with a twist).
Multiplayer mode is in testing. We will soon release a free patch with some online level types.
Extra themes incoming. We will release a special DLC, with colossal hard-mode challenges (Babelum: The Lost Levels), for retro lovers.
We will soon release a 100% free full version of the game for Linux OS. Open-source communities have been helping mankind for free, and Linux deserves extra love. Stay tuned on our homepage.
After two years of the commercial cycle, we will publish the game's source code as open source, for the community to mod and expand.
One More Run!
Climb the tower. Beat your score. Build your vocabulary.
Babelum makes all three part of the same addiction.
Real indie game (#realindie): father and Software Engineer during the day; solo game dev and writer during the night (I am the nerd version of Batman). This game was built with love over 2 years to teach new languages to my daughter (and myself) while showcasing the old-school arcade-like games I loved to play when I was younger. To live is to learn!
