Wave Rider
Endless retro surfing. Ride the face, launch airs off the lip, spin for points and duck the close-outs before the wave eats you.
How to play
- Up/Down ride the wave
- Space air
- Left/Right spin
- P pause
- Enter or tap to start · M to mute
Touch controls appear automatically on phones and tablets. Your best score is saved in this browser and only reaches a leaderboard if you submit it (privacy). Press the fullscreen button for the full cabinet effect.
About this game
Wave Rider keeps you on the face of one breaking wave that never ends. You climb toward the lip to launch airs, spin while airborne and need to land straight, while rocks, buoys and jellyfish drift through your line.
Goal: Score points for distance, shells and landed airs, building a combo multiplier up to x5, until your third wipeout ends the run.
Wave Rider is an original surfing game built for the browser in the style of 1980s arcade cabinets: pixel art, a chiptune soundtrack and CRT scanlines, all generated in code. It is free, has no ads and needs no download or account.
What’s inside
- Endless run with a new, faster set every 30 seconds
- Hazards: rocks, buoys and jellyfish
- Close-outs with a 1.5-second warning before the lip crashes
- Air scores: 100 straight, 300 for a 360, 800 for a 720, 1,500 for a 1080 or more
- Combo multiplier from x1 to x5
- 3 wipeouts per run
- Players
- 1 player.
- On a phone
- Drag up and down on the left half of the screen to move on the face, tap the right half to launch an air and drag sideways in the air to spin; tap the Set label at the top to pause.
- Round length
- Runs usually last 2-5 minutes, depending on how long you avoid three wipeouts.
Tips
- Airs only launch from the top part of the face, so climb before pressing Space or you just get a Get Higher prompt.
- Finish each rotation before you touch down: landing more than about 40 degrees off upright is a wipeout.
- When Close Out flashes, drop to near the bottom of the face and stay on the water, because anyone high up or in the air gets taken out.
Questions
How do I spin in Wave Rider?
Ride up near the lip, press Space or Z to launch, then hold Left or Right to rotate. Each full turn raises the trick score, as long as you land close to upright.
What is a close-out?
A warning appears, then the lip crashes down the face. Riding close to the trough at the bottom of the face keeps you safe; anywhere higher, or in the air, wipes you out.
Leaderboards Today’s challenge
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Scores are highest first. Your best is read from this browser when you submit; three initials, arcade style.
