Carnival Game

Carnival Game puts a night midway in your browser: five skill booths, a ticket jar and a prize counter stocked with plush toys. Roll a ball up a skee-ball style lane, toss rings onto bottles, throw darts at a moving balloon board, pick numbered ducks and swing for the bell on the High Striker. It is free, needs no download and works with a mouse, keyboard or touch screen.

How to play

Tap a booth, or press 1 to 5, to start a round of 33 to 40 seconds with a fixed number of throws. Your score turns into tickets, and reaching the booth’s target adds 10 bonus tickets.

• Roll Ball (9 balls, 40 seconds): flick the ball up the lane, or press and hold still to charge a power meter and let go. It hops the ramp and lands on the board: the outer area scores 10, the rings score 20, 30 and 40, the center scores 50 and the two small corner pockets score 100. A roll that is too soft rolls back for nothing, and one that is too hard bounces off the back wall for 10. One ticket per 10 points, and 250 earns the bonus.
• Ring Toss (8 rings, 40 seconds): press and hold to charge, then let go. A dotted circle shows exactly where the ring will land, and your aim sways gently from side to side. A ring over a bottle neck is a ringer worth 10, or 25 on one of the two gold bottles. One ticket per 2 points, bonus at 50.
• Balloon Pop (10 darts, 35 seconds): tap the board to throw a dart at that spot. The four rows slide at different speeds and the dart takes a moment to arrive, so aim a little ahead. Balloons score 10 and the gold star balloon in each row scores 30. One ticket per 5 points, bonus at 120.
• Duck Pond (4 picks, 33 seconds): for 3 seconds every duck shows its number. Then they hide the numbers and swim, eight around the outside one way and four in the middle the other way. Pick 4 and add up their numbers. The pond holds two 50s, a 30, two 20s, three 10s and four 5s. One ticket per 5 points, bonus at 120.
• High Striker (5 swings, 40 seconds): tap or press Space to swing as the marker sweeps the meter. The closer to the middle, the higher the puck flies, up to 88 points, and the narrow white center zone rings the bell for 150. The marker speeds up every swing. One ticket per 14 points, bonus at 350.

The prize counter

Tickets carry over between rounds. Trade them at the prize counter for eight plush prizes, from a Teddy Bear for 25 tickets to a Giant Dino for 500, and they appear on the shelf. Tickets, prizes and best scores are saved in your browser. There is no money involved and nothing to buy.

Fair booths

Real midway games have a reputation for being rigged. These booths are not: the physics are fixed, so the same roll, toss or throw always scores the same. The ring toss sway shows live on the landing circle, the balloons move at steady speeds and every duck number is shown before you pick. Only the order of the duck numbers and which balloons are gold change between rounds.

Tips

• Roll Ball: a medium-hard flick up the middle finds the 50. The 100 pockets need a harder roll near a corner, and a miss there usually scores 10.
• Ring Toss: the power runs up and back down if you keep holding. Let go when the circle sits on a bottle neck.
• Balloon Pop: the middle rows move fastest, so the top and bottom rows are easier.
• Duck Pond: lock onto the two 50 ducks during the preview. Ducks never change lanes, so you only need to follow their position.
• High Striker: the first swing is the slowest, so make it count. Watch a full sweep before you swing.

FAQ

Is Carnival Game free?

Yes. There is no account and nothing to install, and the tickets and prizes cannot be bought.

Does it work on phones and Chromebooks?

Yes. On a phone, flick, hold and tap on the game, which won’t scroll the page. On a Chromebook or laptop, use the mouse or keyboard.

Can I pause a booth?

Press P or Esc, or use the Pause button. The game also pauses when you switch tabs. Leaving a booth before the round ends earns no tickets.

Can I turn the music off?

Yes. Press M or use the Sound button.

Want more aiming games? Try Darts for 501 and Cricket on a full board, or Whack a Mole for fast reactions.