Introduction
Arkanoid is the classic brick-breaker — bounce a ball off your paddle to destroy bricks, collect power-ups, and clear the board. It sounds straightforward, but high scores require precise paddle control, smart angle management, and knowing when to play it safe versus when to go aggressive. Here's how to improve your game on PlayMore.gg.
Control Your Angles
Just like in Pong, where the ball hits your paddle determines the return angle. The center of your paddle sends the ball nearly straight up, while the edges create sharp lateral angles. This is your primary tool for directing the ball where you want it to go.
When you need to hit bricks on the left side of the screen, position your paddle so the ball contacts the right half. For bricks on the right, use the left half. Mastering this lets you aim rather than just react.
Don't Chase — Anticipate
Beginners track the ball as it falls and rush to get underneath it. Better players watch the ball's trajectory early and move to the landing position before it arrives. This gives you time to choose where on the paddle you want the ball to hit, which means you control the angle of the next bounce.
If the ball is bouncing high and has several wall bounces before coming down, use that time to pre-position rather than waiting.
Clear from the Top Down
It's tempting to clean up the bottom rows first since they're easiest to reach. But the most efficient strategy is to punch a channel through to the top of the brick layout. Once the ball is above the bricks, it bounces between the top wall and the brick rows, destroying multiple bricks per cycle without you needing to do anything. These long "above the bricks" rallies are where huge scores come from.
Focus your angles on creating a gap through the bricks early, then widen it.
Power-Up Priorities
Arkanoid features power-ups that drop from destroyed bricks. Not all power-ups are equally valuable:
- Wider paddle — Almost always worth grabbing. A wider paddle means more margin for error and easier angle control.
- Multi-ball — High risk, high reward. Multiple balls clear bricks fast, but you can lose track of the primary ball and drop it. Stay focused on keeping at least one ball alive.
- Laser/shooting — Great for picking off isolated bricks that are hard to reach with angles alone.
Don't sacrifice a good position to grab a power-up. If catching a falling power-up means missing the ball, let the power-up go. The ball matters more.
Stay Centered
After every hit, move your paddle back toward center. This is the same principle as in Pong — from center, you can reach both sides. If you return the ball from an extreme position and stay there, you leave the entire opposite side of the screen uncovered.
The exception is when you're deliberately steering the ball to one side of the board. In that case, commit to the angle and follow the ball's trajectory, but recover to center as soon as you've made the return.
Play the Walls
Side wall bounces are your friend. A ball traveling at a steep lateral angle will bounce off the side wall and come back across the board, hitting bricks along the way. This is especially effective for reaching bricks in corners that are hard to aim at directly.
If you can set up a shallow-angle shot that rattles between the side wall and the brick layout, the ball will chew through an entire column without your intervention.
Managing Speed
The ball can speed up after certain hits or as the game progresses. When the ball is moving fast, don't try to make precise angle shots — focus on simply making contact. A flat return from the center of your paddle is far better than missing entirely because you tried to clip the edge for a sharp angle.
Save your aggressive angle play for when the ball is moving at manageable speeds.
Handling Tough Layouts
Some brick formations have gaps or isolated bricks that are hard to reach. For these:
- Use steep angles to thread the ball through narrow gaps.
- Bounce off side walls to approach from unexpected directions.
- If available, use laser power-ups to pick off stragglers.
- Be patient — sometimes the ball needs several bounces to naturally find its way to an isolated brick.
Common Mistakes
- Hugging one side. Staying on the left or right after a return and leaving the opposite side wide open.
- Ignoring the ball to chase power-ups. Power-ups are bonuses, not priorities. Never let the ball drop for a power-up.
- Flat returns only. Always returning from paddle center makes you predictable and slow at clearing bricks. Use the full paddle surface.
- Panicking at high speed. When the ball speeds up, keep your movements smooth. Jerky corrections cause more misses than the speed itself.
Conclusion
Arkanoid rewards precision and planning. Control your angles to aim the ball, punch through to the top of the brick layout, grab power-ups when it's safe, and always recover to center. The best players don't just react — they steer the ball exactly where it needs to go.
Ready to break some bricks? Play Arkanoid on PlayMore.gg!