How to Play Air Hockey: Rules, Scoring and Fouls
In air hockey, two players stand at opposite ends of a table and use mallets to hit a puck into the other player's goal. Every goal scores one point, and the first player to 7 points wins the game. You may only hit the puck on your own half, the player who was just scored on serves next, and touching the puck with your hand is a foul.
The table, the mallets and the puck
An air hockey table is a smooth, rail-edged surface full of tiny holes. A fan blows air up through them, so the puck floats on a thin cushion and glides with almost no friction. There's a slot-shaped goal in the middle of each end rail and a centre line splitting the table into two halves, one for each player.
Each player holds a mallet (also called a striker, paddle or goalie), and the round flat disc you hit is the puck. In GameLake's version the table is a glassy lake, your mallet is a lily pad and the puck is a pearl, but it plays the same way.
How a game works
- Start. The first serve is decided by a face-off or a coin toss. On GameLake, you always start with the pearl on your side.
- Hit the puck into the other goal. Strike it with your mallet, straight or off the side rails. A goal counts when the puck drops into the goal.
- Defend your own goal. Between shots, keep your mallet between the puck and your goal.
- After a goal, the player who was scored on serves. They get the puck on their side and play it back into the game.
- First to 7 wins. Seven points is the standard game in official rules, and it's the length of every match on GameLake too.
Want to try it now? Play Air Hockey free against Hop the frog. On Easy he's slow and often a beat late, which makes it a good place to learn.
Official air hockey rules, in plain words
Tournament play in the United States follows rules from the US Air-Table Hockey Association (USAA). You don't need all of them for a friendly game, but these are the ones worth knowing:
| Rule | What it means |
|---|---|
| Game to 7 | The first player to score seven points wins the game. Matches are often played as several games. |
| Stay on your half | Your mallet may reach over the centre line a little, but never cross it completely. |
| Seven-second rule | Once the puck is on your side, you have seven seconds to send it across the centre line. Holding it longer is a foul (the first time in a match is a warning). |
| What counts as a goal | The puck has to drop into the goal. A puck that bounces back out of the goal mouth doesn't count. |
| Serve after a goal | The player who was scored on gets the puck for the next serve. |
| No palming | Touching the puck with your hand, arm or body is a foul. |
| No topping | Putting your mallet on top of the puck to trap it is a foul. |
| Penalty | A normal foul gives the puck to your opponent. Serious ones (like stopping a goal with your hand) give them a free shot at your goal. |
GameLake keeps the parts that matter on a screen: a game to 7, your own half, goals that count when the pearl crosses into the goal mouth, and a serve to whoever was scored on. There's no hand to palm with and no shot clock, so you can take your time lining up a shot.
Where to stand: the defending line
The first habit that wins games is where you wait. Picture a line from the middle of your goal to the puck, and stand on that line, a short way out from your goal. Any straight shot then has to go through your mallet, and you only need to slide a little to block a bank shot.
Standing too far forward leaves room for a bank shot to get behind you; standing right on the goal line leaves you no time to react. About a mallet or two out from the goal is a good start.
How to hit the puck
A mallet hit works like a collision: the puck takes on the mallet's speed. Touching the puck gently just nudges it; swinging through it sends it flying. That's true on a real table and in GameLake's physics, where the lily pad's movement becomes the pearl's.
- Line up behind the puck on the side away from where you want it to go, then move through it towards your target.
- Hit it with the middle of your mallet for a straight shot. Glancing blows send it off at an angle.
- Don't chase it across the centre line. You can't follow it there anyway; hit, then slide back to your defending line.
- Never push the puck towards your own goal. If it's behind your mallet, go around it first.
Not sure where to stand or what to shoot? Switch on Teach me in the game: Hop marks the spot for your lily pad and draws the pearl's path for a good shot, with one line saying why. Coached matches are practice and don't count for your record.
Playing with two people on one device
On GameLake you can also play a friend on the same screen. Choose 2 players: on a phone, one of you drags the bottom lily pad and the other the top one; on a computer, player 1 uses the mouse or W A S D and player 2 the arrow keys. The same rules apply, and the first to 7 wins.
Frequently asked questions
How many points do you need to win air hockey?
Seven. In official rules, the first player to score seven points wins the game, and GameLake matches go to 7 as well.
What is the 7-second rule in air hockey?
Once the puck is on your side of the centre line, you have seven seconds to hit it back across. Keeping it longer is a foul and gives the puck to your opponent (the first time in a match is only a warning).
Who serves after a goal in air hockey?
The player who was just scored on. They get the puck on their side for the next serve.
Can you cross the centre line in air hockey?
Your mallet may reach slightly over it, but it may never cross the centre line completely. In GameLake's game, your lily pad stays on your half.
Is it a foul to touch the puck with your hand?
Yes. That's called palming, and touching the puck with any part of your body is a foul. Putting the mallet on top of the puck (topping) is a foul too.