Flash Flash Revolution/Gameplay

Before you try playing its recommended that you read up on the controls and play styles as well as checking out elements of this page. Knowing more about the game will help you get past the baby steps more quickly. You might also want to watch the FFR help video, which you can find by going to the game and scrolling down to where the three big circles are. Click on the right one and a help video will appear showing you elements of the game and how to play.

Playing
Playing the game is simple, you select a genre using the mouse (click on the arrows to change genre, then click on the big circle to see the songs within it) and then the song by clicking once and then again to begin loading it. Depending on your internet connection, the particular song or the status of the FFR servers, the download can be either long or short.

Once the game begins, arrows will begin to stream upwards (by default) as designated by the step file. When an arrow matches up with the static arrow outlines at the top, press the corresponding key to "play" that arrow. Think of them as beats, the arrows should match the song in some way so its more like you're playing an instrument than a keyboard.

Difficulties
Difficulties help players distinguish between the various differences in the songs and stepfiles available in the game. Primarily, difficulties represent the overall number and density of the arrows, however you can't really rely on the difficulties as they are slapped onto the descriptions of each song by one of the developers (or stepfile artist). There are thirteen difficulties, ranging from beginner all the way up to the unnamed rank (beyond master and guru).

Your best bet is to just try out every song until you understand the difference between them. Even without knowing the system, you should be able to tell that if you're having difficulty on a beginner or easy song, then one labeled "Guru" is probably not one that you'll do well on.

Credits
No, not song credits. Credits are currency gained from playing the game. Doing well on a difficult song will reward you with much greater amounts of credits than a simple beginner song. If you fail, you're likely to not get any credits. Credits are used for two things, challenging other players (betting on the matches) and purchasing new songs. Purchased songs can be bought in the "FFR Shop" via the red button labeled as such. After purchasing a song, it will go into the Purchased "genre" automatically.

Challenges
Challenges were the original way to play against other people, before the multiplayer mode was added. Challenges work like an email system - you send someone a notice with the number of credits you want to bet on the competition, then you play a song, and then they either reply by playing the game or deleting your message. If the receiving player accepts the challenge, then the player who earns the most amount of points in a game is the winner and acquires the credits that the other player bet.

With the creation of the multiplayer mode, challenges are primarily used by...
 * Players who have bad lag when playing multiplayer.
 * Players who want to challenge people they have chatted with on places like the FFR forum.
 * Players who want to transfer credits from one account to another.
 * Players who are competing in one of the official FFR tournaments.

Multiplayer
Multiplayer within FFR is much like the normal game, although the screen becomes split and you can see your opponent's progress throughout the song. Sometimes players are affected by lag, which will result in the skipping of notes (they may be moving but you won't see them until they skip a large distance). Playing with low quality can help a little bit with this problem. No matter which position the player's name is on in the multiplayer room, the arrows of the game they are playing will appear on the left side of the game match.