Rhythm Heaven is split up into different games.
Built to Scale
In this game, white rivets move across the screen to the center in a typical Do-Re-Mi rhythm (speed does vary). When the fifth beat (So) is reached, the rivets will meet at the center. At this point, quickly flick the stylus across the touch screen. If your timing is right, the rivets will connect and fall onto the conveyor belt.
It is recommended that, after flicking, you place the stylus on the touch screen immediately. The piece will not move forward until you flick, and this will make your reaction time faster.
Halfway through the stage, the music will speed up, and so will the rivets, attempting to trick you out. As long as you remain focused, however, it should not pose any problem at all.
The difficulty does ramp up near the end, as the screen will go dark (save for an area near the center) once the game is nearly over. Use the five-note pattern here instead of attempting to follow the limited visuals. Once the few remaining rivets have passed, the stage will have finished.
On to the next stage!
Glee Club
In this game, you are the third member of a glee club, and must rhythmically match your singing with that of the other two.
Holding your stylus on the touch screen to, as the game states, "shut your yap" (keep your character silent), you'll see the first member sing, followed by the second member repeating the same pattern. You must then lift your stylus in rhythm in order to match the pattern of the other two.
There's more, however. At some points, you'll hear the band director say: "Together now". After that, still in rhythm, you'll need to flick the stylus to make your character scream a verse in sync with the other two.
This game is radically different from the first one, mostly due to the fact that you must hold your stylus on the touch screen while waiting for your turn to sing, otherwise your character will (rather humorously) sustain a note for the entire duration of the song.
On to the next stage!
Fillbots
This is an interesting game, and a very repetitive one. Your task is to fill robots with fuel as they travel down a conveyor belt. You'll see the bot get assembled, and then it will start rolling towards the nozzle. Once the bot is directly beneath the nozzle, all you need to do is tap and hold the stylus to fill the robots.
There are two types of robots: small ones require 4 beats to fill, while the large ones require 8. It will take some getting used to, as the background song tends to try and throw you off the beat. Try to listen to the dinging in the background as the robots get filled, and not to the background song.
After many bots are filled and ready to go, it's time to move on to the next stage!
Fan Club
This one introduces pattern-based tapping, in this case, to particular lyrics. You play a monkey in a crowd of monkeys, listening to a singer sing a song. As she sings, listen carefully, because her lyrics will tell you what to do. If you hear her repeat the same word three times in a row, clap (tap) four times to the beat. If you hear her say the words "I suppose", clap, hold for a beat and a half, followed by two quick claps, and then a flick. It's better to see it in action than to try and describe it. After the song finishes, you'll move on to the first Remix of the game!
Remix 1
This remix combines Built to Scale, Glee Club, Fillbots, and Fan Club.