Using the Zeitgeber Lens

Content suitable for all navigators of time

24 hours, 24 songs.

These are the current details pertaining to the function of the Lens that we predict will occur within SMASH’s event on Saturday – and will be updated as more research is undertaken.

Updated 7 July


Progression

This year, each song is represented by an hour of the day. Navigators at the start of the event will find the lens to be focused at 6 o’clock:

  • 6 AM for Aurora, the “day half”, with charts ranging from difficulties 2 – 7 (DDR 5 – 12)
  • 6 PM for Vespera, the “night half”, with charts ranging from difficulties 6 – 13 (DDR 10 – 20-)

As such, there will only be two songs at the start, labelled as appropriate:

Screenshot: SMASH! 2024’s folder begins with one song from each side

When the current hour from any half has been captured, the Lens will automatically focus upon the next hour, unlocking the respective song on both sides. This will occur after every song and game (or, should – please flag us down if the Lens jams for some reason).

Progression of the clock. When a current song has progressed, the next hours on both sides unlock.

Progression is shared amongst all players – if there’s an hour that escapes your capabilities to capture it, perhaps someone else in your half (or the other) could assist...

Capturing

Regular hours can be successfully captured in two ways:

  • Passing the song
  • Total attempts reaches three

The discoverable “quarter hours” (i.e. 9, 12 and 3) are known to typically present a greater challenge of some sort compared to previous hours. These do not require a pass.

Nevertheless, navigators should still aim to capture these hours to the best of their abilities. What exact benefits these hours provide for doing so are currently under investigation, but what is definite is that they appear to be only significant if all three or six of them are discovered.


Player Tags

Your tag (a combination of up to 5 letters, numbers, and symbols ?!.<>-+) is what we, and the website, will identify you as the same player on the leaderboards. To ensure your score counts, at the end of each game you’ll be prompted to enter it in.

About the Machine (Saturday)

You can expect the following from the cab:

  • Very responsive pads – there is absolutely no need to stomp, unlike DDR.
  • Polish and alcohol sprays will be provided to increase/decrease slip and clean the pads. Please don’t use anything else!
  • Each game guarantees you two stages. If for whatever reason a game prematurely finishes before two stages, you may stay on until then.
  • Songs typically range from 2 to 3.5 minutes.
  • Standard ITG metrics (life gauge 4, 21.5ms timing etc). Rescoring early hits will be kept off on Saturday. You may choose to enable FA+ timing in options, but keep in mind we’ll be using the standard ITG score.
  • Fail mode is set to Immediate (the song will finish early the moment all players fail). However, you will always be allowed to play two stages.
  • Anything that requires a pass will not count if the score disqualifies. This includes, but is not limited to, playing at song rates slower than 1.0×, removing notes, removing mines, C-mods on non-constant BPM charts, etc. If the game states your current player options will disqualify, that’s your answer.