All seven tools, and what each one cleans
7 of 7 documented
Seven tools, and the public guides agree on the names: tweezers, cotton tip, toothbrush, heat gun, UV torch, solvent, and polish. The table is the whole set. Tool strength comes from shelf bonuses. The shop does not sell a sharper toothbrush.
| Tool | Best for | What it does | Misuse | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tweezers | Stickers | Grip the edge of a sticker and pull it off; also picks foam packing peanuts out of the way. | Pulling an unheated sticker leaves adhesive residue that needs Solvent. | 3 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| Cotton Tip | Dirt | Balanced all-rounder for surface dirt; also works treated ink/adhesive and polish. | A dirty tip spreads grime and can make the cartridge dirtier. | 2 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| Toothbrush | Grooves and ridges | Reaches seams, edges and grooves the Cotton Tip skates over; slower on flat surfaces. | A fully black brush re-dirties the cartridge. | 2 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| Heat Gun | Liquid, debris and sticker softening | Softens sticker glue before peeling and dries Solvent/Polish liquid. | Not a residue remover: glue left after peeling still needs Solvent. | 2 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| UV Torch | Finding missed grime | Reveals remaining dirt, ink and scratches as a glowing trail; shows per-category stats. | It removes nothing by itself. | 2 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| Solvent | Ink and adhesive | Dissolves marker ink and sticker residue; applied with the dropper, worked with a tip or brush. | Does not remove scratches; using it on a scratch wastes time. | 2 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
| Polish | Scratches | Abrasive paste spread over scratched shells, labels and disc undersides, then scrubbed. | Does not remove dirt, ink or adhesive; multiple scrubs may be needed on discs. | 3 sources for tool identity/function · specific behaviour attributed to linked guides |
Stain to tool
Dirt is the cotton tip, and the grooves are the toothbrush. When the indicator on the brush goes black, wash it. A dirty tip paints the shell. Stickers are the heat gun until the paper softens, then tweezers from a corner. Yanking early leaves film, and that film is solvent’s job. Solvent is also the ink and marker bar. Polish is scratches, including a full coat on the underside of a disc. The UV torch does not remove anything. It shows the spots the other six missed.
Vaagame, working from the demo, says tools are not upgraded in the shop. Into Indie Games has a purchasing section, and the purchases are more parcels per day and more shelf slots. I read those as the same shop, described from two angles, not as a hidden tool-level menu. If a later patch adds tool ranks, the updates page is where I will put that.
Shelf bonuses are the upgrade
The collection-room screenshot lists cleaning power, surface, capacity, rarity, and a discount as shelf effects. Those numbers are one day in the sim (the in-game date reads October 28). I am not publishing them as the maximum. Shelving a cleaned game is how you raise the tools’ results. Selling it is how you raise cash. That trade is the make-money page.
Questions
Is the toothpaste a real-world tip?
No. SmashPad compared the polish tube to toothpaste. The tool is Polish, inside the game.
How many tools are in the final demo?
The developer’s October demo post describes the full toolset on a short slice of games, not a reduced kit.
Where is the matrix source?
Each row’s status cell says how many public guides agree. Empty cells stay empty.
Keep reading
Sources
- Vaagame tools guide . Checked 2026-11-07.
- Into Indie Games guide . Checked 2026-11-07.
- LadiesGamers review . Checked 2026-11-07.