Hemiola
A puzzle you work out by ear as much as by eye.
You're given a rhythm. On the dial in front of you, a few rings turn at their own speeds, and each one strikes a beat as it comes round. You can't place a beat yourself. All you can change is how fast a ring turns and where it starts. Get them right and together they play back exactly the rhythm you were given.
It sounds like music the whole time you're working it out. Every ring has its own short phrase and its own instrument, the slow ones low and the quick ones bright, and they drift against each other and fall back into step.
What's in it
- Twenty-nine panels that get harder slowly, with more rings, longer bars and rhythms that take some hunting.
- Seven bar lengths, each with its own arithmetic. Twelve divides four ways, sixteen only by powers of two, fifteen is three against five, twenty is five against four.
- Eight rooms, each with its own key, instruments and color.
- Haptics, so it can be played with the sound off.
- No score, no timer, no way to lose. Put it down in the middle of a panel and nothing is spoiled.
- No account, no analytics, no internet. It works on a plane.
Price
All twenty-nine panels are free. They include all seven bar lengths and up to four rings.
At the end, the game asks once whether you want more. One payment adds over five thousand more panels. No subscription.
Help
Something broken, or an idea? Get in touch. Also worth reading: what Hemiola does with your data, which is nothing.