How to play Poddle

What you need

• A computer or a tablet with a browser: Windows, Mac, Chromebook, Linux or iPad. It shows the court.
• A phone, iPhone or Android. It is your paddle.
• A webcam, if you want to move by stepping side to side. Without one, the game runs you to the ball.

Start playing

1. Open poddleball.com on the computer. Press Play, type your name, and pick a court or Play a bot.
2. The game shows a code to scan. Point your phone's camera at it and open the link. No camera? Open poddleball.com/pad on the phone and type the code shown on the computer.
3. Tap Start on the phone. On an iPhone, choose Allow when it asks about motion.
4. Hold the phone like a paddle handle: edge up, screen facing sideways, top end pointing at the screen. Keep still for 5 seconds. Then tip it up. Any grip works. Press C, or hold Calibrate again on the phone, to start over.
5. Swing. Keep the phone's page open while you play. It keeps the screen awake by itself.

Play with an AirPod

On a Mac, one AirPod can be the paddle instead of a phone. It is lighter than a phone. You need macOS 14 or later, Google Chrome, and AirPods Pro, AirPods 3, AirPods 4 or AirPods Max. AirPods 1 and 2 have no motion sensor the Mac can read. The free Poddle Helper app passes the AirPod's motion to the game.

Download Poddle Helper Open source: see exactly what it does

Free under the MIT License. By downloading you agree to our Terms. Only use a copy from this page or built from the GitHub source.

1. Open the download. It unzips to Poddle Helper. Drag it into Applications and open it.
2. The first time, your Mac says Apple could not verify the app is free of malware. That is because it is not signed by Apple yet, not because anything was found. Press Done (not Move to Trash). Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, scroll down to “Poddle Helper was blocked” and press Open Anyway, then enter your password. From then on it opens normally. On macOS 14 you can also right-click the app and choose Open.
3. When it asks to use Motion & Fitness, choose Allow. That is how it reads the AirPod. A small icon appears in the menu bar.
4. Connect your AirPods to the Mac as the sound output.
5. In System Settings, Bluetooth, click the i next to your AirPods and turn off Automatic Ear Detection. The AirPod then keeps sending motion out of your ear.
6. Open poddleball.com in Chrome and pick a court. On the Connect your phone screen, choose AirPod at the top. If Chrome asks to connect to devices on your local network, choose Allow. That is how the page reaches Poddle Helper. The game remembers your choice.
7. Hold one AirPod in your hand. Leave the other in its case. Calibrate the same way as with a phone.

What Poddle Helper does

• It reads only the AirPod's motion: which way it points, how fast it turns and moves, and which bud it is. No sound, no microphone, no location, no files.
• It sends that motion only to poddleball.com in your browser, on the same Mac. It never connects to the internet itself, and it reads motion only while a Poddle page is open.
• It is open source. Read the code on GitHub.
• To quit, click its menu bar icon and choose Quit. To remove it, drag it to the Trash.

Prefer to build it yourself? The source and build steps are on GitHub.

Play with friends

Press Play, type your name, then Create court. You get a 4 character code and a link. Send either to a friend. Each player needs their own screen and their own paddle.

Quick play puts you on a court with someone waiting, or starts a new one. First to 11, win by 2.

Play Matt

Choose Play a bot and pick Rookie, Club, Tour or Pro. Esc pauses the match.

Trophies and ranks

Every match that counts toward your stats earns or costs trophies, as long as you are signed in with a username. A win against a person is worth about 30 trophies. A loss costs 6 trophies in Bronze and more at each rank above, up to 34 in Pro; both depend on the gap between your trophies and your opponent's. A win against Matt at your rank's level or harder pays a few, up to a daily limit. Win trophies to climb eight ranks, from Bronze to Pro. Each rank below Pro has three divisions, and its medal grows with each one. Pro has no divisions: Pro players are told apart by their place on the global leaderboard, for example Pro #12. Ranks up to Platinum are never lost once reached. Leaving a match against a person once the first ball has been struck costs the trophies of a loss. Your rank emblem is shown beside your name to your opponent and to anyone watching your court; the rest of your record stays private, apart from the global leaderboard, which lists signed-in players with a username and their trophies.

Play a tournament

Open Courts and choose Create tournament. You get a 4 character code to share. It needs at least 4 players and takes up to 16. While people join, everyone warms up against Matt. The host presses Start.

It is a knockout: first to 7, and the final goes to 11. With an odd number of players, Matt fills the empty spot. Between rounds you see the bracket. If you are knocked out, you can watch the rest.

Move

Settings has two ways to move. Body uses your webcam to follow where you stand. Auto runs you to the ball.

Check behind you before you swing, and hold your paddle tight. It has no strap.

Watch a match

Press Play and pick Watch next to a court in the list. If a friend sends a link to a full court, the game asks if you want to watch. No paddle needed. Keys 1 to 4 switch between broadcast, split screen, player view and free camera.

Questions

What do I need to play Poddle?

A computer with a browser, and a phone. The computer shows the court. The phone is your paddle. There is nothing to install and no account needed.

How does my phone become the paddle?

Press Play and pick a court. The game shows a code to scan. Point your phone's camera at it, open the link, and tap Start. The phone sends its motion to the game. Hold it like a paddle handle, edge up, and swing.

Which phones work?

An iPhone or an Android phone with motion sensors, which is nearly all of them. On an iPhone, choose Allow when it asks about motion.

Can I play with an AirPod instead?

Yes, on a Mac. AirPods Pro, AirPods 3, AirPods 4 and AirPods Max work, with the free Poddle Helper app open on the Mac. See Play with an AirPod on this page. You hold one AirPod. The other stays in its case.

Is Poddle Helper safe?

It reads only your AirPod's motion and sends it only to Poddle in your browser, on the same Mac. It never connects to the internet itself. It is open source, so anyone can read what it does. Quit it from its menu bar icon, or drag it to the Trash to remove it.

How do I play with a friend?

Press Play, then Create court. Send your friend the link or the 4 character code. Each player needs their own screen and their own paddle.

Can I play alone?

Yes. Choose Play a bot and pick Rookie, Club, Tour or Pro. Matt takes the other side.

How do trophies and ranks work?

Every match that counts toward your stats earns or costs trophies, as long as you are signed in with a username. A win against a person is worth about 30 trophies. A loss costs 6 trophies in Bronze and more at each rank above, up to 34 in Pro; both depend on the gap between your trophies and your opponent's. A win against Matt at your rank's level or harder pays a few, up to a daily limit. Win trophies to climb eight ranks, from Bronze to Pro. Each rank below Pro has three divisions, and its medal grows with each one. Pro has no divisions: Pro players are told apart by their place on the global leaderboard, for example Pro #12. Ranks up to Platinum are never lost once reached. Leaving a match against a person once the first ball has been struck costs the trophies of a loss. Other players see only your rank emblem, never your record; the global leaderboard lists signed-in players with a username and their trophies.

Can I play Poddle on Windows, a Chromebook, Linux or an iPad?

Yes. Any of them can be the screen, with your phone (iPhone or Android) as the paddle. Only the AirPod option needs a Mac. A phone on its own can watch a match, but it is too small to be both the screen and the paddle.

Why does the phone say Looking for your computer?

The game is not open on the computer, or the code is from another tab. Open poddleball.com on the computer, press Play, pick a court, and scan the code it shows.

Why does Poddle say Connect your AirPod?

Poddle Helper is not open, or the AirPod is not the Mac's sound output. Open Poddle Helper, pick the AirPods in the sound menu, and turn off Automatic Ear Detection. To use your phone instead, choose Phone at the top of that screen.

Is Poddle free?

Yes. No account needed: type a name and play. Signing in with Google is optional and keeps your stats on any device.