#babelum

Babelum a fast 3D snake-like arcade game, puts you into high-speed, high-pressure runs on Linux PC and Windows. All of this comes to life thanks to the creative drive of developer Retro Tales. Which is yours to play on Steam. I didn’t expect a snake game to mess with my brain like this. One run turned into five, then ten, and suddenly I was locked in, chasing a word instead of a score and somehow caring more than I should. That’s the moment Babelum clicks.

This feels like the games we grew up on… but smarter

You know that old pressure from classic snake. The kind where one bad turn ends everything. Babelum also takes that feeling and rebuilds it in full 3D. Tight movement. Small spaces. Risky paths. But here’s the twist. Every pickup is a letter. Every run is a word. You are not just surviving. You are spelling under pressure. At first, I thought the language thing would slow it down. It doesn’t. It sharpens everything. You stop guessing, commit, and feel every decision. And yeah, you can ignore the learning part if you want. Pick a language you already know and just go for high scores. It still works. It still hits.

One more run becomes a problem real fast

The core loop is simple. Dangerous too. You move fast. You chase letters in order. Your tail grows. The space shrinks. Enemies start closing in. You either complete the word… or crash trying. And when you fail, you don’t quit. You instantly see a better route. A tighter run. A smarter move. So you go again. That “one more run” feeling? Babelum owns it.

Babelum keeps changing just when you get comfortable

Every few levels, the gameplay also throws something new at you. Not small tweaks. Real changes.

Sometimes it’s pure action. Tight spaces and enemies everywhere.

Sometimes it opens up, due to let you explore. Hidden paths. Secrets.

Then it flips into runner mode where you react fast and listen closely.

Then it hits you with story challenges that actually test how well you know the language.

It never lets you settle. Movement even changes. One level feels free and fluid. Another locks you into lanes. Then suddenly you are thinking in grid patterns like it’s a puzzle. You stay on edge the whole time.

Babelum - Launch Trailer

The challenge is not messing around

This is not a chill mobile experience. Babelum is built to push you. That’s part of the fast 3D snake-like arcade identity. Bronze feels fair. Gold feels earned. You mess up, it’s on you. No hand-holding. But when you nail a perfect run? Clean path, perfect word, tight turns with zero panic… it feels incredible. That old-school satisfaction is alive here.

Learning sneaks in without killing the fun

Here’s what surprised me. You actually remember the words. Not because the game forces you. Because you earned them. You built them under pressure. You heard them when you completed the run. Babelum sticks. There’s also a Word Book tracking everything. Kind of like a collection system. And yeah, it taps into that “gotta catch them all” mindset. You end up learning without trying to learn.

Built for players like us

This isn’t just another casual experiment. It’s clearly made for people who care about performance, tight gameplay, while keeping replay value. It runs on Linux. So that already earns respect. Multiplayer is coming. That’s dangerous in the best way. And after two years, they also plan to open-source the code. That last part matters. Mods, custom levels, community expansions… this could grow way beyond launch.

Where Babelum is heading

There’s more coming.

An Arcade mode for pure snake gameplay. No language layer. Just raw skill.

There is also a hard-mode DLC called “The Lost Levels” for people who want pain.

New themes, more content, and online modes.

It’s not a one and done release. Since it’s a platform they want to build on.

Final thought