difficulty
mechanic · easy, normal and hard
Asteroid Pong has three difficulty levels: easy (5 lives, 75 s and a shield every level), normal (3 lives, 45 s and a shield earned with points) and hard (3 lives, fast CPU and no shield). On top of that, adaptive difficulty nudges the CPU based on how you play, without leaving the level you picked.
Easy, normal and hard compared
This table shows what changes between the three difficulty levels.
| easy | normal | hard | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting lives | 5 | 3 | 3 |
| Time per level | 75 s | 45 s | 45 s |
| Time on boss levels | 110 s | 90 s | 90 s |
| Shield | 1 per level | every 15,000 pts | none |
| Extra life every | 5,000 pts | 10,000 pts | 10,000 pts |
| Goals to clear (levels 3–6 / 7+) | 3 / 4 | 4 / 5 | 4 / 5 |
| Ball speed | low, rises slowly per level | medium | high, rises faster per level |
| Speed-up per hit | +2,5 % | +3,5 % | +4 % |
| CPU | slow and misses more | medium | fast, accurate and reads ahead |
| Ball split chance | 4 % | 5 % | 8 % |
| Paddle stun | 1,3 s | 2,0 s | 2,6 s |
| Enemy fire | 60% further apart, 20% slower | baseline | 15% more frequent, 10% faster |
| Boss health | −30 % | baseline | +15 % |
| Pause between boss attacks | +30 % | baseline | −10 % |
| Kamikaze warning | 1,5 s | 1,0 s | 0,85 s |
| Finisher zones | 40% wider | standard | 20% narrower |
| Finisher needle | slow | fast | very fast |
| Final attack warning | 2,6 s | 2,0 s | 1,6 s |
| Final attack every | 26 s | 20 s | 20 s |
| Titan reticle lanes | 3 | 2 | 2 |
Extra help on easy
On easy you also get more time to react to almost every threat.
- Meteors warn for 2.3 s (instead of 1.9 s) and their craters last less.
- Lasers warn 30% longer, and moving beams warn for 1.4 s, move slower and are narrower.
- Drones arrive further apart and are 20% easier to hit.
- Bursts have one fewer bullet.
- Bosses' inverted controls have 40 s of rest (instead of 25 s).
Adaptive difficulty
Adaptive difficulty nudges the CPU based on how you're doing, but it never takes you out of the difficulty you picked.
- It starts neutral every run.
- If you clear a level without losing a life and with more than half the time left, the CPU gets a little tougher.
- If you lose lives, it eases off: a little for each level where you lost one and a bit more for every goal scored against you.
- At most it changes the CPU's speed and aim by 18%. "Easy" stays easy.
- It also shifts the level's music.
Difficulty in each mode
In most modes you choose the difficulty, but the daily challenge is the same for everyone.
- In campaign and boss rush you choose easy, normal or hard.
- The daily challenge is always played on normal.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between normal and hard?
Both have 3 lives and 45 seconds, but hard has no shield, a faster ball and CPU, bosses with 15% more health and narrower finisher zones.
Does the difficulty change by itself?
A little: adaptive difficulty makes the CPU up to 18% tougher or softer based on how you play, always within the difficulty you picked.
What difficulty is the daily challenge on?
Always on normal, with the same run for everyone that day and a single attempt.
Related
lives and shieldmechanic · lives, time and score
finishermechanic · bosses, giants and titans
daily challengemode
campaignmode · arcadeDescribes version 0.8.26 · 2026-10-09