Steady Hand
Slide your ring along your wire to the bell. Don't touch the wire. First to 3.
Steady Hand is a two-player version of the buzz wire game in which you slide a ring along your wire without touching it. Touch it and your wand drops for a second, and the first to ring the bell scores the point.
A brass wire, a ring on a stick and a bell at the end. Slide your ring along without touching the wire while your rival's ring creeps along theirs; touch it and it buzzes and your wand drops for a second.
Also known as Buzz wire game, Wire loop game.
- How you hold it
- Face-off
- Match
- First to 3
- Length
- About 1 minute
- Play
- Friend or bot
How to play Steady Hand: quick rules
About 1 minute at first to 3. Full rules, options and bot levels are further down.
- 1Hold the grip and slide your ring along your wire.
- 2Touch the wire and it buzzes: your wand drops for a second.
- 3First to ring the bell wins the point. First to 3 wins.
Steady Hand rules
Setup
- Each player has a wire in their own half, from a start post round a U-turn to an end post with a bell.
- Every point gets a new wire, and both players get exactly the same wire, turned to face them.
- At GO both rings sit on their start posts. Grab your wand by touching its grip.
Play
- While you hold the grip, the ring follows your finger along the wire. It's drawn a little ahead of your finger so your finger never hides it.
- The ring stays threaded on the wire: it can't jump ahead across a bend.
- Touch the wire and it buzzes: your wand drops back onto the wire where it is and is frozen for a second before you can grab it again.
- Letting go is never a penalty. Your ring stays where it is.
- The posts are safe; only the wire buzzes.
Scoring
- The first ring to reach the bell rings it and scores the point.
- Then a new wire is built for the next point.
Ties and replays
- If both rings reach the bell at almost exactly the same instant, it's "Too close!" and the point is replayed on a new wire.
- If nobody reaches the bell within 60 seconds, the point is replayed on a new wire.
- If three points in a row are replayed this way, the third is settled by a coin toss.
- Pausing mid-point cancels it; it restarts on the same wire from the start posts.
Winning
- First to the target wins: 3, 5 or 7 points. A match never ends drawn.
Rings and wires
- Big ring
- The most room round the wire; good for beginners.
- Medium ring
- The default.
- Small ring
- Very little room: a real test of a steady hand.
- Gentle, Wavy or Wild wire
- How much the wire wiggles. Wavy is the default.
Tips to win at Steady Hand
- 1Go slow on the bends. A buzz freezes your wand for a second, which costs more than a careful curve.
- 2Speed up on the straighter stretches, where the ring has the most room.
- 3Letting go is never a penalty, so lift your finger and grip again to reset an awkward hand angle before a tight turn.
- 4Rest the side of your hand on the table for a steadier ring.
Controls
Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
- Touch down on your wand's grip and drag. A touch away from the grip does nothing.
- One finger per player; a second finger in your half is ignored while you hold the wand.
- Your finger can slide over the middle line and still steer your own wand.
- Lift any time to rest; the ring stays put.
Options
Every option is free. Defaults are marked.
| Option | Choices | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| First to | 3 (default)57 | The score that wins the match. |
| Ring | BigMedium (default)Small | How much room the ring leaves round the wire. |
| Wire | GentleWavy (default)Wild | How much the wire wiggles. |
| Steady streak (extra) | On (default)Off | A flame on your wand after 3 seconds without a touch. Looks only. |
| Back to bead (extra) | OnOff (default) | A touch sends your ring back to the last bead you passed, with a much shorter freeze. |
| Swaying wire (extra) | OnOff (default) | The wire sways slowly, the same for both players. Not available with reduced motion on. |
Play Steady Hand against the bot
The bot plays Blue with a hand that trembles, slips now and then and drifts on tight curves. When it touches the wire it buzzes and freezes just like you. It sees only its own wire, never your ring.
Easy
Moves slowly with a shaky hand and touches the wire often.
Normal
Moves at a steady pace and buzzes now and then, mostly on curves.
Hard
Moves quickly and smoothly and rarely touches the wire. A small ring and a wild wire catch it out more, as they do people.
Online, tournaments and hints
- Online
- One phone onlyBoth players race along their wires at the same time and a finish can come down to a split second, so Steady Hand stays on one phone.
- Tournament
- Can be drawn in a tournamentIn a tournament it uses the default options: first to 3, Medium ring, Wavy wire and Steady streak on.
- Hints
- No hints here: it's all about your own reactions.
How it feels
- A soft click as you grab, a low hum while you hold, and a buzz with sparks when the ring touches the wire.
- A faint tick and a halo when you nearly touch.
- The bell dings and swings and the winner's wire lights up.
- Haptics follow your phone's settings and the in-app vibration switch.
Accessibility
- Each player owns their half; a frozen wand turns grey with a ring timer, so colour isn't needed to read it.
- One finger, one drag: it can be played one-handed.
- Big ring and Gentle wire help players with a tremor and first-timers, and letting go is never a penalty.
- With reduced motion on, sparks, the bell swing and the swaying wire are dropped.
Steady Hand questions
Hold your wand's grip and slide the ring along your wire to the bell without touching the wire. A touch buzzes and freezes your wand for a second. First to ring the bell wins the point, and first to 3 points wins.
Yes. It's the classic buzz wire toy made into a race: both players have the same wire and the first to the bell scores.
Go slow on curves and quicker on straights. A buzz freezes your wand for a second, so a clean run usually beats a fast, shaky one.
If both rings reach the bell at almost the same instant, it's "Too close!" and the point is replayed on a new wire. A match never ends drawn.
Yes. Steady Hand 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 plays Blue with a hand that trembles, slips now and then and drifts on tight curves. Choose Easy, Normal or Hard.
Play Steady Hand on one phone
Free on Android. Sit face to face, or take on the bot on Easy, Normal or Hard.
