Dart Duel rules: how to play, and how to win

On your turn your dart waits under the disc, in your colour. Tap anywhere on the board, or press Space or Enter on a keyboard, and it flies straight up into the bottom of the disc.

The flight takes a moment (140 milliseconds), and the dart sticks wherever the disc has turned to when it arrives. So you tap a touch before the gap you want reaches the bottom, the faster the disc, the earlier.

A dart that sticks stays in the disc for the rest of the round, and the turn passes to the other player.

A dart that lands closer than 11 degrees to a dart already in the disc bounces off. That's roughly where their flights would touch. It doesn't matter whose dart it is: hitting your own counts too.

When your dart bounces off, you lose the round and the other player wins it. The disc is cleared and the next round starts.

A full turn of the disc is 360 degrees, so it holds at most 32 darts before there's no room left at all. Every round ends, and most end long before that: between two careful players, a round lasts about 16 to 20 throws.

Before the game you pick Best of 3 (first to win 2 rounds) or Best of 5 (first to win 3). Who throws first swaps every round. Each round's disc is harder than the last:

• Round 1: a plain disc turning steadily, once every 4 seconds.
• Round 2: a little faster, with one peg and one bonus star.
• Round 3: two pegs and two stars, and the disc turns back the other way every few seconds.
• Round 4: the disc goes the other way round, speeding up and slowing down.
• Round 5: three pegs and two stars, and the disc speeds up, slows down and turns back.

The pegs and stars are set at least 30 degrees apart when a round starts, and they're the same on both phones in an online game.

The disc's movement runs on through the whole round. It doesn't change when the turn passes, so the other player's throw faces the same disc as yours. Only a slow spin changes it, and only for the throw of whoever holds it.

While the other player or the computer is throwing, your disc keeps turning at the same speed. Their dart waits at the bottom and flies when their spot comes round, so you see it stick in the right place. The disc never speeds up to get there.

A peg is a red "not allowed" sign on the edge of the disc, with a red band either side of it. It counts just like a dart: land within 11 degrees of it, inside the band, and you're out.

A bonus is a star with an icon in it, a shield or a snail. Stick your dart in the star and the bonus is yours: it pops and its icon appears by your round count. A star nobody takes is gone when the round ends.

• Shield: your next hit this round doesn't knock you out. The dart bounces off, the shield breaks, and the turn passes as if you'd stuck. You can hold one shield at a time, and it's gone when the round ends.
• Slow spin: on your next throw the disc moves at half speed, the whole pattern slowed down. It's used up by that throw.

The computer shows what works. All three levels aim for the middle of the biggest gap, and they differ only in how far they miss: Easy by up to 25 degrees, Medium by up to 11, and Hard by up to 4. Over 500 matches each, Medium beats Easy 495 times and Hard beats Medium 499 times. Accuracy is everything.

• Aim for the biggest gap, not the nearest one. A gap twice as wide gives you far more than twice the room, because 11 degrees at each end is out of bounds.
• Let the disc go round once before you tap, and pick your gap while it does. You have 30 seconds a throw online.
• Take a shield when it sits in a safe gap. Early in a round it's an easy grab; late, when the disc is crowded, it can be the round.
• A slow spin is most useful in rounds 3 to 5, when the disc turns back or changes speed. Half speed gives you twice as long to time your tap.
• Remember the flight. On round 2 the disc turns about 15 degrees while your dart is in the air; tap a little early.

It’s free in your browser, with no sign-up. Play Dart Duel against the computer, with a friend on the same screen, or send a friend a link and play online. Or tap Quick match to play someone new.

• Snakes and Ladders rules, and which piece to move▶ Play
• Ludo rules for two players, and when to capture or stay safe▶ Play
• How to win at Ludo: strategy for two players▶ Play
• Word Search tips: how to find every word faster▶ Play
• All guides