FAQ

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The basics of osu! gameplay are shown in this section, along with a breakdown of the scoring system and in-game interface.

Playing

I've never played this "Ouendan" thing - what is it?

Oh, ok. Well, Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan([1]) is a rhythm game for the Nintendo DS. The gameplay consists of only three elements: tapping circles on the touchscreen, dragging a ball across a fixed path and rotating a spinner very fast. All these elements are timed to (covers of) popular Japanese songs. It looks like this on the DS:

You can see the circles on the bottom screen, and on the top screen you have the story. Each stage is basically a self-contained story about a person in trouble. That's where the Ouendan (Cheer squad) comes in. Through the magical power of male cheerleading, you have to help the people in trouble.

How do I play?

While most PC users won't have a touchscreen at their disposal (unless you are a lucky one to own a tablet PC), this game is made to be playable with a normal mouse, as well as any number of input devices you can possible think of (wiimote works quite well, as does a graphics tablet if you have one of them laying around). Different play styles can be found in the Play Styles page. There are some songs which push the limits of the normal mouse, but all have been tested and are (somehow) passable using only a mouse. Please don't let the lack of a touchscreen deter you!

Let's move on to the gameplay.

Hit Circles

^ Here you can see the circles you have to tap. The smaller coloured circle on the outside shrinks and you have to hit the note at the exact point the outside circle overlaps with the white border. Don't rely on your eyes, though: listening to the music to decide the right moment is better.

Sliders

^ Here we have a slider thrown into the mix. First, you have to hit it at the right moment, but it doesn't end there. A ball will start to move across the path you see. You have to hold the mousebutton and keep your pointer on the ball as it moves (you do not control the movement yourself). Sometimes, as in the screenshot above, you have to move back at the end of the path. You can tell by the reverse symbol at the end of the path.

Spinners

^ This is a spinner. You have to click and hold the mouse, and spin (clockwise or counter-clockwise, either way is fine) like mad before the time runs out. The bars on the outside indicate how close you are to passing. On the DS, these are a good way to scratch your touchscreen (or screen protectors if you're smart), especially on the higher difficulties. In osu!, spinners have been toned down as to not be such a nuisance to complete. The maximum number of spins per minute achievable is 477 which is also the rate at which the Auto game modifier spins while the Spun Out game modifier spins slower at 287 spins per minute. While holding a mouse button on a spinner, your mouse is locked into the spin area, so you can go crazy, or just spin very small circles - watch some of the top replays if you are interested in spinning styles!

In-Game Interface

^ This is the game interface. The top left bar is your "health". This will decrease at a steady rate, but you can replenish it by hitting notes at the right time. A perfectly timed hit will increase your health more than a badly timed hit. A total miss will take a good chunk out of your health. Next to the health bar is your score. The scoring system takes a while to figure out, but I won't bore you with the details here. The number on the bottom left is the combo counter/score multiplier.

Scoring

This section details all the intricacies of scoring, including mathematical formulae.

Accuracy

Accuracy = Total points of hits / (Total number of hits * 300)

Total number of hits = (Number of misses + Number of 50's + Number of 100's + Number of 300's) Total points of hits = (Number of 50s * 50 + Number of 100s * 100 + Number of 300s * 300)

In other words, each miss counts as 0 points, each 50 counts as 50 points, each 100 as 100 points and each 300 as 300 points. Add them all together and divide the sum with the number of hits multiplied by 300. If you score only 300s you will get a result of 1.00 which means 100% accuracy. If you score only 100s you will get a result of 0.3333 which means 33.33% accuracy.

Score

The score given by each hit circle and end of a slider is calculated with the following formula:

Score = HitValue + HitValue * (Combo multiplier * Difficulty multiplier * Mod multiplier) / 25

Hit value = The hit circle judgement (50, 100 or 300). Combo multiplier = (Combo before this hit - 1) OR 0, which ever is higher Difficulty multiplier = The difficulty setting for the beatmap. Mod multiplier = The multiplier of the selected mods.

Additionally each slider start, end and repeat tick awards 30 points, each slider middle tick awards 10 points and each spin of a spinner awards 100 points. You are also awarded with additional 1000 points for each spin of a spinner after the spinner meter is full.

Hit circle judgement

You get a 300, 100 or 50 from a normal hit circle depending on how accurately you click on it. If you do not click on the hit circle at all or click on it way too early you will receive a miss.

The judgement for sliders does not depend on the accuracy of the initial hit. Sliders consist of slider ticks, which include the start, end and repeat points of the slider. You receive a 300 if you successfully get all slider ticks, a 100 if you get at least half of them and a 50 if you manage to hit even one of the ticks. You only receive a miss if you hit none of the slider ticks.

It must be noted, however, that clicking a slider way too early does not incur a miss, but will reset the score multiplier to 0.

For a spinner you receive a 300, 100 or 50 depending on the number of spins done compared to the length of the spinner. You receive a miss if you are not able to fill the meter shown on both sides of the spinner.

Multiplier

The following each add a point to your score multiplier:

• A successfully hit hit circle.
• A successfully hit start of a slider.
• A successfully touched end of a slider.
• A successfully touched slider tick.
• A successfully completed spinner.

The following will reset your score multiplier to zero:

• Missing a hit circle.
• Clicking a slider start way too early.
• Missing a slider start or slider tick.
• Not completing a spinner.

The following will not increase or reset your score multiplier:

• Missing a slider end.

Grades

• SS = 100% accuracy
• S = Over 90% 300s, less than 1% 50s and no misses.
• A = Over 80% 300s and no misses OR over 90% 300s.
• B = Over 70% 300s and no misses OR over 80% 300s.
• C = Over 60% 300s.
• D = Anything else.

A silver S or SS (also known as SH or SSH) means that the song was played using the 'hidden' or 'flashlight' mod.

Life meter

The system used to calculate life drain and life gain is complicated so it will not be explained in detail. It all revolves around the life difficulty setting which can be set on a per beatmap basis.

You gain life from:

• Hitting a hit circle. (Better judgement leads to more life gain. The last hit circle in a color combo awards more life.)
• Hitting a slider start, end or return tick. (Better judgement at the end tick leads to more life gain)
• Spinning and completing a spinner. (Better judgement at the end of the spinner leads to more life gain)

You lose life from:

• Constant life drain.
• Missing a hit circle or slider.
• Not completing a spinner.

Alternative Game Modes

How do I play the Taiko mode?

For those of you who are not familiar, Taiko no Tatsujin is a Taiko Drum rhythm game made by Namco, that involves the simulation of playing the drums to the beat of the music. In osu!, beatmaps can be played in the styling of Taiko no Tatsujin through use of the specal Taiko game mode.

Like basic osu!, there are three elements of gameplay (a full explanation of the Taiko special game mode can be found in Taiko):

The standard beat

This will appear as either a reddish orange or a pale-blue circle. If it is a reddish orange circle, you must press one of the buttons bound to the inner portion of the Taiko drum (left mouse button, or alternatively, one of the keys configured in the options menu which is displayed at the start of the map in the upper left).

For blue notes, you must press the right mouse button or one of the keys for the outer ring of the drum. The notes must be pressed when they reach the small circle next to the drum in the status bar on the playfield.

If the note is a LARGE circle, you may press BOTH of your inner or outer drum keys (depending on the colour of the note) for additional points.

Drum rolls

These appear as yellow bars. You gain points for playing many notes to the beat of the song.

Dendens

These appear as spinners, with a countdown displaying the time you have remaining to clear it. You must press the keys for Orange and Blue in alternation until the Denden is clear.

Controls

The default controls for the Taiko mod are:

Orange: Left Mouse, X, C Blue: Right Mouse, Z, V

You may configure the keyboard buttons as you see fit, from the Input tab in the Options menu.

Note: The position of your osu! cursor does not matter, when playing beatmaps in Taiko game mode.

What is "Catch the Beat"?

Catch the Beat is the second special game mode to be added in, after Taiko. Instead of clicking circles, now you move a catcher at the bottom of the screen while fruits fall from above.

Controls

By default, the left and right arrow keys are used to move the catcher. Pressing the left shift key with one of the arrow keys will make the catcher dash in that direction (indicated by a bright glow around the catcher).

If the Relax mod is used, control of the catcher is done by moving the mouse instead.

Common Issues

My ranked score isn't increasing! Is this a bug?

No, it's not a bug.

First, check to make sure you're connected to the internet and logged in. Scores obtained while not logged in are not submitted and therefore do not count towards your ranked score. Such scores are only recorded on your local scoreboard.

Ranked score only counts the best online score from each beatmap set (or song), not each difficulty.

Here's an example. I have the following scores on three maps:

   BRANDY - The Festival of Ghosts 2
       Relaxing : 3,000,000
       DaRRi MIx : 5,000,000
   ZZ - Samurai Blue
       Easy : 500,000
       Normal : 1,000,000
       Hard : no score
   Matchbox 20 - How Far We've Come
       Normal : 2,000,000
       Hard : 1,500,000

My total best score from each beatmap set is 5,000,000 + 1,000,000 + 2,000,000 = 8,000,000, which is my ranked score.

Also, approved maps do NOT count towards your ranked score BUT your accuracy do. Approved maps are distinguished by having the "flame" icon instead of the "heart" icon.

Can I disable Kiai Time?

NO.

The maps are too hard! Where can I find some easier maps?

Pokebis has compiled a set of beatmaps suitable for beginners to play. You can find them here[[2]].

Alternatively, you can sort the ranked beatmap list by difficulty. The easiest maps are at the top of the list.

List of guides in osu!
Official FAQ and Ranking Guidelines	Game FAQ • Ranking Criteria • Taiko Ranking Criteria
General Mapping/Modding Info	How to mod? • List of Mapping Techniques • Taiko Map Guidelines • Filling The Song Set-up fields • Making Good Sliders • Fitting the Size-limit
Modding Aides	AI BAT
Skinning/Hitsound Info	Skinning in General • Making Properly Centered Spinners • Custom Hitsound Library • Adding Custom Hitsounds • Making the Background of Things Transparent
Storyboarding Info	Storyboard Scripting • Reducing SB Load
Video Editing	How to Compress Videos Without Destroying Their Quality • How to Add Videos taken from Youtube
Common Mistakes	How To Correctly Change Map's Artist/Title • Basic MP3 Modifications
Miscellaneous	Changing Title Text • Music Theory • Setting the Offset on the Correct Beat • Collab Information • Starting a Beatmap Project