Game Mechanics

## Gameplay

Gameplay in A Dance of Fire and Ice consists of two orbs known as **Planets**, one stationary on a track and the other orbiting the first one.

The player has to tap the screen or press a key when the orbiting planet is over the next tile on the track, which locks the orbiting planet in place and causes the other planet to orbit in turn.

If the orbiting planet makes a full circle around the stationary planet or the player taps too early too many times, the orbiting planet will crash into the stationary planet, causing them both to explode, resulting in failure.

## Tile Effects

Certain tiles have an effect on them that is applied when a planet lands on it.

## Timing

A tap will successfully move the orbiting planet to the next tile if it is within 60° of the tile (⅓ of a beat).

The strictness of the timing window for registered hits scales according to the song's tempo, becoming stricter for faster tempos, up until a certain threshold BPM. Above the threshold BPM, the timing window is a fixed duration.

The threshold BPM can be configured from the timing option, according to the table below:

 Lenient
 Normal
 Strict

## Judgement

There are 4 possible timing judgements when landing on a tile, each having a specific effect on the World's progression:

(

100
%

Total Tiles

0.01
%

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}+0.01\%\right)}

(

100
%

Total Tiles

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}\right)}

(

100
%

Total Tiles

−
0.01
%

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}-0.01\%\right)}

(

100
%

Total Tiles

−
0.01
%

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}-0.01\%\right)}

 Multipress

In *Perfects Only Mode*, the effects are slightly modified.

(

100
%

Total Tiles

0.01
%

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}+0.01\%\right)}

(

100
%

Total Tiles

)

{\displaystyle +\left(\dfrac{100\%}{\text{Total Tiles}}\right)}

 Early/Late
 Early/Late
 Multipress
*(Needs testing.)*

## Angles & Patterns

*Main articles: Tile Angles, Tile Patterns*
The angle of a tile determines how many beats there are between the current and next tile. For example, a 180 degree angle (aka straight tile) will have a length of 1 beat, and a 90 degree angle will have a length of half a beat. There are various possible tile angles.

Certain angles composed together form a pattern, and each pattern has a certain rhythm.

## Worlds & Stages

There are several Worlds in the game, and each World has several stages.

* Each stage is a tutorial except the last, which is the boss stage.
* It is not necessary to complete a stage to advance to the next stage in the same World.
* It is necessary to complete Worlds 1~6's boss stages to access Worlds 7~12 and the Xtra Worlds.

### Speed Trials

Once a World's boss stage is completed, the Speed Trial is unlocked for that World. The Speed Trial is the boss stage with an adjustable speed setting, allowing the player to increase or decrease the speed in increments of ×0.1.

In Speed Trials:

* Checkpoints are not available.
* All Worlds (except World B and World MO) have an "Aim" speed, which rewards a Red Lantern when completed.

## Clear Types

There are currently 4 ways to clear a World's boss stage, 3 of them corresponding to a coloured lantern that appears above the World (mobile) or on the World sign (PC) once achieved:

 **Pure Perfect** | Golden Best Accuracy | Clear with only Perfects (no (E/L)Perfects) and without using any checkpoints.

Multiple clear types (Blue, Yellow, Pure Perfect) (Red, Pure Perfect) can be attained in the same round.

## Loss Types

There are currently 3 possible ways to lose a round:

 OVERLOAD!
 No "[Judgement]" allowed