Orb Rush: Getting Started

Orb Rush is the racing game in the Labs Arcade. You race as your companion: bomb downhill, launch off ramps, glide, and try to hit the finish first. One main action — easy to start, hard to master.

Open the Arcade from the Games hub, or ask the assistant "open the arcade."

The four moves

  1. Charge — hold the action while running downhill to wind up a jump.
  2. Launch — let go right at the lip of a ramp. Better timing, bigger air.
  3. Glide — in the air, tilt to fly farther. Hold too long and you'll stall.
  4. Land — touch down lined up with the slope. Clean landings keep speed; perfect ones pay a bonus. String them together and you get even faster.

Along the way you'll see:

  • Pink orbs in the air — grab them to refill boost
  • Green pads on the ground — hit them for a kick of speed
  • Crests (ranked races only) — five per map, tucked high off the racing line. See Crest Atlas.

Controls

  • Phone / tablet — rotate to landscape. Hold the right pad to charge and boost; use the left pad in the air to tilt (lift to glide, dive to drop in).
  • Desktop — hold Space downhill to charge, release at a lip to launch. A / D or the arrow keys tilt in the air.

The game eases graphics on slower devices so the race stays smooth.

The maps

Ranked racing uses 15 named maps — five in each theme:

  • Alpine — Powder Keg, Glacier Cathedral, Aurora Gauntlet, Frostfang Ridge, The Long White
  • Dune Sea — Sidewinder, Titan Dunes, Scorpion Run, Fata Morgana, Endless Erg
  • Neon Void — Hyperlane, Gatecrasher, Ghostwire, Event Horizon, Midnight Grid

Some are short sprints (Powder Keg, Hyperlane). Most take a couple of minutes. Endless Erg is the longest. Everyone in a ranked lobby races the same map; the map in rotation changes through the day.

Practice

Practice is free and unlimited from the Play tab:

  • Race any of the 15 named maps. Your best time on a named map can post to that map's record board.
  • Chase a faint "ghost" of your best run or the map leader from the in-race menu.
  • Try random courses if you just want to mess around.

Crests do not show in practice and do not count there. Use practice to learn the line, then hunt crests in ranked.

Live racing is on the Arcade Play tab: Free Race (ranked, no pot) or 50 Coins. Details: Orb Rush: Ranked Races.

Career

Career is the solo 200-race path — five islands, stars, crests, and its own quests. Unlock it after 20 ranked heats. The first 10 career races are free, then 10 more each week, or stay unlocked by earning on offers. It does not use a ranked stake and does not move Elo.

Where to go next