Effing Hail

About

You control a hailstorm in this chaotic physics-based arcade game. Adjust updraft strength to freeze raindrops, grow massive ice pellets, and pummel a city below. Each cycle lets you tweak variables like wind speed and cloud density to maximize damage. The more hail you spawn the faster the carnage escalates as buildings crumble under relentless icy bombardment. Simple controls hide tricky cause-and-effect relationships between atmospheric conditions and destruction scale. A cult favorite since 2009 this quirky indie title turns meteorology into a demolition sandbox. Players enjoy the satisfying feedback loop of tweaking weather patterns and watching unintended consequences unfold. While short on polish the game's absurd premise and educational undertones earned it a dedicated following among physics enthusiasts. Its minimalistic design belies deep strategic possibilities for those who study the science behind the mayhem.

Storyline

How does large hail form? Updrafts within thunderstorms push rain high into the cloud where very cold air freezes it. Once frozen it starts to fall but gets caught in another strong updraft where it gathers more moisture on its way back up making it larger. If the updrafts are strong enough they will continue this process for long periods of time allowing the hail to accumulate more moisture and more moisture. Updrafts can get so strong they even intrude into the stable stratosphere. When updrafts are this strong it becomes possible to suspend large hail for long periods of time further adding moisture to the hail, sometimes building it to incredible sizes.