Rhythm Tap

Rhythm Tap is a four-lane rhythm game where notes fall toward a line and you hit them in time with the music. It comes with six original songs, from slow lo-fi to fast drum and bass, all played live by your browser. A Tiles mode adds a quick piano tiles style challenge. You can play this rhythm game online free, with no download, on a keyboard, a mouse or a phone’s touch screen.

How to play

Choose a song and a difficulty from the menu. Each song shows its tempo, length and your best grade.

• Hit the notes: notes slide down four colored lanes. Press the matching key as each one crosses the line: D, F, J and K from left to right, or the four arrow keys. On a touch screen, tap the lane, or click it with a mouse.
• Hold long notes: on Normal and Hard, some notes have a tail. Hit the head and keep holding until the tail reaches the line. Letting go early breaks the hold.
• Timing: every hit is judged Perfect (within 45 ms), Great (within 90 ms) or Good (within 135 ms). A note that passes the line untouched is a Miss. A stray press with no note nearby does nothing.
• Combo and multiplier: each hit adds to your combo. Every 10 in a row raises the score multiplier by one, up to x4, and a Miss drops it back to x1.
• Health: Misses drain the health bar, and good hits slowly refill it. If it empties, the song stops.

Finish a song and you get a grade from your accuracy: S for 95 percent or better, then A, B, C and D. A run with no Misses is a full combo. Best scores and grades are saved in your browser.

The songs and charts

All six tracks were written for this game: drums, bass, chords and a lead melody, synthesized on the spot. Nothing is a recording. The note charts are built from each song’s own notes: Easy follows the melody on the main beats, Normal adds the in-between notes and long holds, and Hard plays the full melody with extra two-lane hits on the first kick of each bar. In each intro, before the melody comes in, the notes follow the drums. Every note you hit lines up with a sound you can hear.

The game keeps time with the browser’s audio clock rather than the screen’s frame rate, so notes stay in sync even if the animation stutters.

Tiles mode

Tiles is an endless mode in the spirit of piano tiles games. Rows of four tiles scroll down the screen, and each row has one dark tile. Tap the dark tiles in order from the bottom up, using the columns on a touch screen or D, F, J and K on a keyboard. Each tap plays the next note of a melody from the game’s songs. The board starts when you tap the first tile and speeds up with every tile you hit. Touch a light tile, or let a dark tile slide off the bottom, and the run is over.

Calibrating your timing

Speakers and headphones add a small delay, and Bluetooth audio can add a lot. If your hits feel late, open Calibrate and tap along with 16 clicks: the game measures how far behind the beat you land and suggests an offset. You can also nudge the offset 5 ms at a time and change the note speed.

Tips

• Start on Easy. Paper Lantern and Neon Steps are the slowest songs and a good place to learn the lanes.
• Use two hands. Keep your left hand on D and F and your right on J and K, the same home keys you type with.
• Protect the combo. The x4 multiplier is worth more than squeezing a Great into a Perfect.

FAQ

Is Rhythm Tap free?

Yes. It is free with no account and nothing to install. Pick a song from the menu and press Enter, or tap it.

Does it work on phones and Chromebooks?

Yes. On a touch screen, tap the lanes or tiles, and you can use several fingers at once. The game area won’t scroll the page while you play. On a laptop or Chromebook, use D F J K.

Can I pause?

Press P or Esc, or use the Pause button. It also pauses if you switch tabs.

Why do my hits feel late?

Your sound probably reaches you a little after the game plays it. Run the tap test in Calibrate and apply the suggested offset.

Want to play real melodies? Try our Virtual Piano, which teaches songs note by note, or test your ear and memory with Simon. For more music picks, see the best browser rhythm games.