The game

Everything that happens in a Sonarush match, you hear. This page explains how: what to listen for, how you fight, what you do online and how you grow.

The arena, by ear

Every match takes place in an arena seen from above, with north always ahead of you. You move with the arrow keys in fixed directions: up is north, down is south, left is west, right is east. You never need to turn: you always face where you walk, and the audio uses the same layout, so a sound on your right is to the east.

With headphones the game uses 3D audio: every sound comes from its own direction, in front, to the side or behind, and the louder it is the closer it is.

The rules of sound

Sonarush's sounds follow four rules, always the same, so they're quick to learn:

pitch tells you whose sound it is: high for your allies, low for enemies;
rhythm tells you if it's hostile: a pulsing sound is an enemy;
a rising note means you gain something, a falling one that you lose it;
timbre tells you which family it belongs to: weapons, footsteps, objectives, interface.

What you hear in a match

Who's there: a presence tone for every nearby character, steady for allies and pulsing for enemies.
Who's moving: footsteps, lower for enemies. An enemy standing still makes no noise.
Incoming shots: a whoosh that follows the projectile and grows as it gets closer, so you can dodge in time.
Where you are: team arenas have four fixed landmarks that sound on their own, a fountain, a generator, chimes and a campfire. Hear which way they come from and you know where you are.
Walls: they stop shots and muffle whatever is behind them; a rustle tells you when you're in cover. They're made of stone, wood or metal, and a shot hitting one lets you hear which.
Bushes: they rustle on their own. Whoever stands still inside disappears, even from the radar; whoever moves makes them rustle.
Corridors: in narrow passages your footsteps echo.

When you want to know something, ask

One key for each question: A your health, D the score, R the radar of enemies and objectives, X whether you're in range, W where you are, O nearby obstacles, S the sonar that tells you what's ahead up to twenty metres. Before a match you can also explore the map cell by cell with F2.

Fighting

You don't need precise aim. Just face the enemy, by moving towards them, and be within your range: then Space hits and aim assist does the rest, even against someone running. A lock-on beep tells you when an enemy is in your sights; if it's lower, you're still too far away.

Every hit you land has a confirmation, and its pitch rises as the enemy gets closer to defeat.
Your super (E) charges as you hit. Tanks also charge it by taking hits, supports by healing.
Your gadget (Q) has a cooldown and becomes available at the character's level 7.
The Star Power is a passive ability, different for every character, from level 9.
Ammo reloads one shot at a time, with a note that keeps rising: you hear when the magazine is full.
Stay out of fire for a few seconds and your health regenerates.

Characters and classes

The 23 characters are split into seven classes. Tanks have lots of health and hold the front; assault characters are fast and hit hard up close; fighters are balanced and hold their own anywhere; marksmen are agile and shoot at medium range; artillery deals huge damage from afar but reloads slowly; supports heal and protect the team; control characters lock down the field with mines and slows.

Each has their own weapon and sounds, their own speed (which you hear in your footsteps), magazine and range. Some shoot straight, some lob over low walls, some strike in a cone up close. Meet all the characters.

The modes

Duel · one against one: Best of five one-minute rounds, in an arena that shrinks. At the end of each round two notes tell you how it went. Available from the start.
Star Hunt · three against three: A star appears in the middle every ten seconds, and you hear it chime. The team that reaches ten stars and holds them for fifteen seconds wins; anyone eliminated drops theirs. From 50 trophies.
King of the Hill · three against three: A zone in the middle, recognisable by its hum: you score while at least one of you is inside and no enemy is. From 150 trophies.
Heist · three against three: Your safe is to the south, the enemy's to the north, and they hum differently. Crack theirs before they crack yours; at every quarter of its health a safe locks down for three seconds. From 300 trophies.
SonarBall · three against three: A jingling ball and two goals: shoot with the attack key, lob with the super key. The first to two goals wins, and a goal has its own orchestral sound. From 300 trophies.
Survival · everyone against everyone: Ten players, no respawning. After ten seconds acid bubbles in from the edge towards the centre: finishing in the top three counts as a win. From 500 trophies.
Siege · as a team against the waves: Weekends only. Three of you defend the Core at the centre of a bastion from ever stronger waves of enemies; every fifth wave brings a champion. Three minutes with the Core standing and you've won, but it goes on as long as it holds. From 700 trophies.

Modes rotate during the day, the same for everyone: Duel alternates with Survival, King of the Hill with Heist, and SonarBall with Star Hunt. Each mode has several maps, which change on each of its turns.

In the Rehearsal Room you choose mode, map, character and bot difficulty, even with characters you don't own yet, and lose nothing. In the Range you try a character against a dummy.

Online, with others

Sonarush is an online game: when you choose a mode you join a queue with players of a similar level, and if someone is still missing after ten seconds, bots take the empty spots. Without internet, or if you prefer, you play offline against bots.

Your account is created automatically, with no email or password, and also saves your progress on the server. With your recovery code you can take it to another computer; if you like, you can link an email.
Friends: add them by name or tag, hear who's online and what they're doing, invite them to your squad.
Squads and rooms: play on the same side, or set up a custom match in the online Rehearsal Room, with spectators.
Listen to a friend: hear their match from their point of view.
Quick chat: keys 1 to 8 send your teammates ready-made phrases, like "Attack!" or "Need help!", which everyone hears in their own language. There is no free chat.
Clubs: up to 30 members, with roles, a chat of ready-made phrases and a club leaderboard.
Leaderboards: global, by country and for every character.
Do not disturb: when you want to play in peace, nobody invites you and nobody listens in.

Online matches sound exactly like offline ones: what you learn against bots works against people.

Growing

Trophies and ranks: winning earns trophies for the character you play; your total raises your rank, from Wood to Legend.
The Decibel Ladder: 75 milestones up to 20,000 trophies, with rewards, new characters and new modes along the way.
Sonar Rewards: your first three wins each day give a reward, which you open in four taps, hearing its rarity rise.
The Frequency: the free seasonal path, one season a month, with seventy steps of rewards and Echo Chests.
Missions: daily and weekly, to climb the Frequency.
Levels and abilities: with coins and Power Points you upgrade characters up to level 10 and unlock gadgets and Star Powers.
Sound skins: a new set of sounds for your character, to try before buying with gems.
The daily gift, the day streak, personal records and "Your next step", which always tells you the nearest goal.

Coins, gems and Fragments are all earned by playing. If you want, you can buy gems, skins and Frequency Plus with real money: only cosmetic and convenience items, never advantages in matches. The rules are in the terms of use.

Accessible from day one

Sonarush has been accessible from day one: we didn't adapt it afterwards, and accessibility isn't a separate mode. The whole game is designed to be played entirely by ear, with 3D audio, speech and braille, and blind players play on equal terms.

On Windows it speaks through NVDA or JAWS, on Mac through VoiceOver, braille display included; without a screen reader it uses the system voice.
The guided tutorial and help on every screen (F1).
Three verbosity levels, announcements you can turn off one by one or by family, adjustable announcement pace.
Six separate volumes, 3D audio you can switch on or off, directions as left and right or as compass points.
The Audio glossary, to hear every sound with its explanation.
Eighteen languages, picked automatically from your system.

Ready to start? The quick guide takes you to your first match.