Hand Slap
Slap before they pull away. Swap roles every point. First to 5.
Hand Slap is a two-player reflex game where one player attacks and the other defends, swapping every point. The attacker holds to slap, but a quick tap is only a fake, and a defender who moves on a fake loses the point.
One of you attacks, one defends. The attacker holds to slap and the defender taps to pull away, but a quick tap is a fake, and a defender who flinches loses the point.
Also known as Red hands, Slaps.
- How you hold it
- Face-off
- Match
- First to 5
- Length
- About a minute
- Play
- Friend or bot
How to play Hand Slap: quick rules
About a minute at first to 5. Full rules, options and bot levels are further down.
- 1One attacks, one defends, and you swap every point.
- 2Attacker: hold to slap, but a quick tap is a fake!
- 3Defender: tap to dodge, but only when it is real.
- 4Move on a fake and you lose the point; first to 5 wins.
Play Hand Slap here
Two of you on this screen, or you against the bot. The full game is in the app.
Hand Slap rules
Roles and setup
- Each point has one attacker and one defender, and your half says which you are: "You attack · hold to slap" or "You defend · tap to dodge".
- The first attacker of a new match is picked at random; on a rematch, the player who lost attacks first. Roles swap after every point that is scored.
- A 3-2-1 countdown starts every point. A finger already down at GO doesn't count: lift and touch again.
- When both players are one point from winning, a coin toss picks who attacks the deciding point, and a banner says who.
Attacking
- Hold your finger down to slap. A small ring fills under your finger and turns solid when the slap is locked in.
- Touch and let go quickly and it's a fake: your hand twitches forward and comes back, and you need a moment before you can attack again.
- You get three fakes a point. After the third, "Out of fakes" shows and your next touch is a real slap, however quickly you let go.
- Wait too long and "Slap now!" pulses; after about five seconds the hand slaps on its own.
Defending and scoring
- Tap anywhere in your half to pull your hand away. Only your first tap counts, and a finger resting on the screen is not a tap.
- Pull away from a real slap in time: "Dodged!" and the point is yours. Too late, or no tap at all: "SLAP!" and the attacker scores.
- Move on a fake, or when nothing is coming: "Flinched!" and the attacker scores, so mashing the screen only loses points.
- If your tap and the slap land at practically the same moment, the dodge wins.
Interruptions and winning
- If the game is paused mid-point, or you choose Play on after starting to leave, that point is replayed after a fresh countdown with the same roles and the fakes reset.
- First to the target wins: 3, 5 or 7 points. There are no draws.
- Your first match of Hand Slap on a phone is practice for the fake: a quick tap still slaps, and a tip says fakes start from the next game.
Tips to win at Hand Slap
- 1Defending, don't mash the screen: moving on a fake, or when nothing is coming, gives the point away.
- 2Attacking, spend your fakes. You get three a point, and a defender who has just seen two is often itching to move.
- 3Vary your timing, but don't wait too long: after about 5 seconds the hand slaps on its own and the defender sees it coming.
- 4After your third fake your next touch is always a real slap, and a sharp defender knows it, so save a fake for late in the point.
Controls
Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
- Attacker: touch and hold anywhere in your half to slap. A quick tap is a fake.
- Defender: tap anywhere in your half to pull your hand away.
- A touch stays with the half it started in, even if your finger slides across.
- Timing is read from the moment you touch, not from the screen's frame rate, so a slower phone gives nobody an edge.
Options
Every option is free. Defaults are marked.
| Option | Choices | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Points to win | 35 (default)7 | The score that wins the match. |
Play Hand Slap against the bot
The bot reads only what you can see. As defender it watches the wind-up and reacts to the strike with a human reaction time, never before a slap is really coming unless it gambles. As attacker it can't see what you are about to do.
Easy
Fakes rarely, reacts late to a real slap and now and then flinches when nothing is happening.
Normal
Reacts about as fast as an average person, fakes now and then and sometimes gambles on the wind-up.
Hard
Reacts fast, varies its timing and fakes more often, though never more than twice in a row. A fake can still catch it when it gambles early.
Online, tournaments and hints
- Online
- One phone onlyHand Slap is decided in a fraction of a second. Internet delay would decide every dodge, so it stays on one phone.
- Tournament
- Can be drawn in a tournamentIn a tournament it is always first to 5, whatever your saved option.
- Hints
- No hints here: it's all about your own reactions.
Coming soon
- Slap sound cue. An option that plays the whoosh when a slap is locked in, as a cue you can hear.
- Slower hands. An accessibility option with a slower slap, for players who find the dodge too quick.
How it feels
- A soft swish on the wind-up, then a whoosh, with a light buzz for the defender, the moment a slap is locked in.
- A loud comic slap with a sun burst and a brief slow-motion, and a quick zip when you dodge.
- A short tic on a fake and a sad boing on a flinch.
- Cartoon gloves in Red and Blue, with no skin tone.
Accessibility
- Colour is never the only cue: roles are written in each half, the attacker's hand is always on top, results are text banners, and the cuffs differ, solid for Red and dotted for Blue.
- The whole half is the target, so one finger is enough.
- With reduce motion on, there is no slow-motion or sun burst, and banners fade in.
- Fakes are optional: a player who can't tap quickly can attack with real slaps only, and a shorter match or the Easy bot helps anyone who finds the dodge tight.
Hand Slap questions
One player attacks and holds to slap; the other defends and taps to pull away. Roles swap every point and the first to 5 wins.
A quick tap and release by the attacker: the hand twitches forward but doesn't slap. A defender who moves on a fake loses the point, and each attacker gets three fakes a point.
No. Every point has a scorer, and if a dodge and a slap land at practically the same moment, the dodge wins.
As defender, wait for the real slap rather than the twitch, because flinching loses the point. As attacker, mix fakes with real slaps and vary your timing.
Yes. Hand Slap in Duo Clash is built for two players on the same phone. Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
Yes. The bot reads only what you can see. Choose Easy, Normal or Hard.
Play Hand Slap on one phone
Free on Android. Sit face to face, or take on the bot on Easy, Normal or Hard.
