Note: Some of the information here has not been fully investigated and may be incorrect.
Max Combo[]
The maximum combo for a chart is:
- The number of standard notes, slide notes, angle notes and hold notes (+1 for each), plus
- The number of x10 notes (+10 for each), plus
- The full combo value of all hold notes (in addition to the +1 above)
Total Notes[]
The total notes value is the number of Perfects scored in a perfect play of a chart. It consists of:
- The number of standard notes, slide notes, angle notes and x10 notes (+1 for each), plus
- The full combo value of all hold notes (every tick is always scored as a Perfect)
Grade Score[]
The grade score determines how many stars you achieve during a song. It is not shown to the player.
The type of notes that apply to your grade score are:
- Standard notes, slide notes, angle notes and x10 notes (1 for each)
- The initial hit and the last tick of each hold note (2 for each hold)
Because this doesn't match any of the other metrics, it means that the total notes value for a chart can not be used to determine its grade boundaries, and the results screen can not be used on its own to find out how close you are to them!
You receive grade points for Perfects (the last hold note tick is always Perfect) and Greats, but not for Way Offs and Misses:
- Perfect: 2 points
- Great: 1 point
Stars appear when you reach a specific number of points. This seems to vary by chart, but 6 stars always appears at around 97%.
A few charts (most notably Spin Angular Momentum) have significantly lower star requirements - this may be because angle notes are not considered for the grade boundaries, but do contribute to the grade score.
Points Score[]
The points score is the number shown during play, and is used for leaderboard ranking. Each note hit gives you a multiple of that note's base score - the multiple depends on your current combo before you hit the note.
The base score for each type of note is:
| Note type | Perfect | Great | Way Off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard note | 405 | 329 | 46 |
| Slide note (both types) | |||
| Angle note | |||
| x10 note | |||
| Hold note (initial tap) | |||
| Hold note (ticks) | 19 | - | - |
The multiplier starts at 1x and maxes out at 4x. It is affected by x10 notes and hold notes, so you'll often skip some of the multiplier windows.
| Combo
(previous note) |
Multiplier
(this note) |
Perfect | Great | Way Off | Hold |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 - 5 | 1x | 405 | 329 | 46 | 19 |
| 6 - 8 | 2x | 810 | 658 | 92 | 38 |
| 9 - 11 | 3x | 1215 | 987 | 138 | 57 |
| 12+ | 4x | 1620 | 1316 | 184 | 76 |
Limit Breaking[]
Limit breaking is an advanced gameplay trick, used to score higher than the usual maximum points score on a very small number of charts. On this wiki, if the displayed max score for a chart has an asterisk after it (e.g. 123456*), a limit break is possible.
Warning: While limit breaking does not cause any known major issues, there is no guarantee it won't in the future. LB scores appear in the leaderboards, but the extra points do not contribute to your episode total score. Also, you may be uncomfortable with abusing score mechanics to achieve an "impossible" score and take a higher spot on the leaderboard - if so, don't LB as leaderboard scores are permanent.
A limit break is a score multiplier manipulation that occurs in the first 13-or-so notes of a chart. It usually involves delaying the input of a particular note, using a x10 or hold note to increase the multiplier, then tapping the delayed note. The result: the delayed note scores with a higher multiplier than normal.
The gains from limit breaking are small enough that this will usually only be useful if you're already capable of getting the maximum score on a chart. It usually involves much more unintuitive and tight timing than regular play. In an ideal situation, you can still score a Perfect on the delayed note. You may have to settle for a Great, however, but a Great at a higher multiplier will always score more than a Perfect at the lower multiplier.
As an illustration, consider this situation where the fifth standard note is at the same time as a hold note:
| Combo | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multiplier | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | |
| Type | Std | Std | Std | Std | Std | Hold | h | h | h | h | Total |
| Score | 405 | 405 | 405 | 405 | 405 | 405 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 57 | 2601 |
If we delay the fifth standard note (at combo 5) until the combo is already at 6, we can get a 2x multiplier for it, giving the last 1x to a low-scoring hold tick instead. However, the delay means we may not be able to get a Perfect.
| Combo | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multiplier | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | |
| Type | Std | Std | Std | Std | Hold | h | Std (Grt) | h | h | h | Total |
| Score | 405 | 405 | 405 | 405 | 405 | 19 | 658 | 38 | 38 | 57 | 2835 |
In some cases it will be difficult (or impossible) to achieve a Great on the delayed note. Way Offs will not allow you to limit break. You can sometimes improve your note grade (when using an x10 note) by hitting the x10 note a little early. If necessary, you can hit the x10 note very early (relatively speaking!) and score a Great, allowing you to hit the delayed note earlier. However, two Greats will only limit break in certain situations.
It's also better to score a Great on the earlier note if this allows you to improve from a Great to a Perfect on the delayed note. This usually greatly increases the difficulty though.
There is another, rarer, type of limit break which always scores +19 over the usual maximum. We don't currently understand the mechanism, but it involves a standard note that occurs around the same time as the beginning of a hold note. As usual, it occurs before the combo multiplier is maxed out. In this situation, one of the hold ticks scores at a higher multiplier than usual. This is known to occur on Ray (Expert) and Venetian Staccato (Hard).