Whack-a-Mole Game
Classic whack-a-mole game. Click the moles as they pop up. 30 seconds, highest score wins.
How to play
- Click Start to begin the 30-second round.
- Watch the 3×3 grid — moles (👀) pop up from random holes.
- Click a mole while it is visible to score a point.
- Moles that disappear before you click count as misses.
- The game ends after 30 seconds; your score and best are displayed.
Click or tap the moles before they disappear back into their holes. Each hit scores a point; each mole that escapes counts as a miss. You have 30 seconds.
How it works
Whack-a-Mole is a reaction-based clicking game where moles pop up randomly from holes in a grid. Each time a mole appears, you have a short window to click it before it ducks back down. The 30-second session tallies every mole you successfully whack, and your goal is to hit as many as possible.
The game trains peripheral awareness and click precision under time pressure. Moles appear unpredictably, so you cannot anticipate a specific hole and must react to movement across the whole grid. Keeping your eyes near the center of the grid gives the widest field of view to catch moles at the edges.
As the game progresses, mole pop-up windows may shorten, requiring faster reactions. Hovering your cursor near the center of the grid rather than chasing the last mole reduces travel distance and improves your hit rate.
Beyond casual fun, this game is a useful benchmark for mouse reaction speed and hand-eye coordination, and can serve as a quick warm-up before gaming sessions.
Worked example
Improving your score with better cursor positioning
- Run a baseline session and note your score while chasing each mole after it appears.
- In the next session, keep your cursor near the center of the grid at all times.
- Click a mole and return the cursor immediately to the center rather than leaving it at the edge.
- Use peripheral vision to detect the next mole appearing rather than scanning hole by hole.
- Compare your score to the baseline.
Higher hit count due to reduced cursor travel distance between moles.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Chasing each mole to its exact hole location and leaving the cursor there, which increases travel distance for the next mole.
- Clicking too early before the mole is fully visible, which may not register as a valid hit.
- Focusing eyes narrowly on one area of the grid instead of using a wide relaxed gaze to catch moles across all holes.
Key terms
- Pop-up window
- The brief interval a mole is visible and clickable before it retreats back into its hole.
- Miss
- A mole that appears and disappears without being clicked, not counted in your score.
- Hit rate
- The proportion of moles that appeared during the session that you successfully clicked.
Frequently asked questions
- How fast do moles appear?
- Moles pop up every 700 ms and stay visible for 0.9–1.5 seconds. The timing is fixed — only your reaction speed varies.
- Does it work on mobile?
- Yes — tap the moles on touch screens. The grid is touch-friendly.