How to play Hezarfen? Rules, landing guide and stars

What is the goal in Hezarfen?

Every level starts on a roof. You jump, glide through the air and try to touch down on the red carpet on the target roof. Landing on the carpet clears the level and unlocks the next one. The closer to the middle you land, the more stars you get; a golden strip marks the very center of the carpet.

• There are no lives, no timer and no limit on attempts.
• After a failed flight, one tap lets you try the same level again.
• You can replay a cleared level later to earn more stars; your best result in each level is kept.

Controls: how do you go up and down?

In flight the screen is split in two: the upper half means up, the lower half means down. Two round areas marked ↑ and ↓ appear on the right of the screen, and the direction you press glows gold.

• Jump: while waiting on the roof, tap the screen. The flag on the roof snaps taut in the wind every three seconds; jump right as it does and you get +2 m/s on your starting speed.
• Stretch the wings (up): in flight, hold the upper half of the screen. The wing stretches, you glide further and the landing marker moves forward.
• Brake (down): in flight, hold the lower half of the screen. The wings fold, you sink more steeply and under control, and the marker moves back; braking never adds speed.
• Normal glide: lift your finger.

If you slide your finger between the upper and lower half while holding, the direction changes. Input changes smoothly: the marker never jumps, it slides over about 0.15 seconds, so fine adjustments are easy. On a keyboard, ↑ or W is up; ↓, S or Space is down. The first press jumps while you wait, and Esc pauses the game. When you let go, the wings travel about 6 units forward for every 1 unit they drop (1:6); pressing up makes it about 1:9, braking about 1:3. Meters in the game use a scale compressed for play.

What is the landing guide in Hezarfen?

While you fly, a dashed line stretches ahead of you with a marker at its end. It answers one question: where would you land if you let go now? It takes the wind, your speed and your wings into account and updates every moment. The marker's color tells you the result in advance:

• Gold: the 3-star center strip.
• Turquoise: on the carpet, but outside the center strip.
• Red: off the carpet.

The carpet bar at the top of the screen shows the same thing on a flat strip: the carpet's zones, Hezarfen's position (a dot) and the landing marker. If the marker is past the carpet, a red arrow lights up at the right end of the bar. In flight a turquoise reach band appears under the bar: it shows every spot you could land on between full down and full up; if the carpet is inside the band, you can get there. The basic method: if the marker is past the carpet, press the lower half; if it falls short, press the upper half; let go once it reaches the middle.

How do you earn stars?

Only one thing decides your stars: how far from the middle of the carpet you land. Landing speed, flight time and how much you braked do not count.

1. 3 stars, Golden carpet!: at most 3 m from the middle, the golden strip.
2. 2 stars, Nice landing!: at most 6 m from the middle.
3. 1 star, Landed!: anywhere else on the carpet.

The 12 levels hold 36 stars in total. Stars are not just for show: new wing parts in the Workshop unlock with your total star count.

Auto-landing, the wrong roof and falling

You never have to flare for landing. About 2 m above a roof, Hezarfen raises his nose by himself and touches down softly; if you keep holding the lower half you still brake a little and land shorter. A hard landing only happens after a very steep drop, and it means another try.

• Wrong roof: landing on a roof that is not the target does not lose the level. You jump again from there, but you can earn at most 2 stars in that level.
• Falling into the sea: boatman Hüsnü Reis pulls you out of the water; the flight ends.
• Falling into the street: a hay cart catches you; the flight ends.
• Hitting a wall, or flying far past the carpet, also ends the flight.

Nobody gets hurt in the game; after every fall, one tap and you jump again.

How do you read the wind?

Every level has a wind. The wind rose uses Istanbul's eight traditional winds: Yıldız (north), Poyraz (north-east), Gündoğusu (east), Keşişleme (south-east), Kıble (south), Lodos (south-west), Günbatısı (west) and Karayel (north-west). Since you fly east from Galata, western winds such as Lodos, Günbatısı and Karayel push you from behind and the marker slides forward; eastern winds such as Poyraz and Gündoğusu blow in your face and the marker slides back.

You can also read the wind from the scene:

• Sails over the sea show the wind direction.
• Flags show the breeze on the rooftops.
• Streaked areas are places with an extra gust.

Bakery smoke, sinking air, gulls and masts

• Bakery smoke: hot air rises. Fly into the smoke and Hezarfen spirals upward on his own, leaving it when he reaches the top. Pressing up or down does nothing inside the smoke; wait for the climb, then check the marker once you are out.
• Blue-shaded area: the air sinks there and pushes you down. Try to pass over it or spend little time inside.
• Gull: hitting one cuts your speed to 80%.
• Ship's mast: hitting one cuts your speed to 70%.

A gull or a mast never knocks you out of the sky; it only slows you down. Slower means your landing spot slides back, so check the marker again after a hit.

Chapters and levels

The 12 levels are split into three chapters and unlock in order: clear one and the next opens. Each chapter adds something new.

1. Galata (1-4): First step, Air brake, Over the inn, Rooftop road. Short hops from roof to roof, with the street below.
2. Golden Horn (5-8): Poyraz, Gull flock, Shipyard, Far shore. Sea crossings, headwind, gulls, ship masts and gusts.
3. Eminönü (9-12): Bakery smoke, Two chimneys, Sinking air, Seraglio Point. The target is sometimes higher than you; you learn to climb in smoke and to avoid sinking air.

Workshop: which wing is good for what?

Your wing has two parts: fabric and frame. New parts unlock with your total stars. No part is best at everything; you choose for the level.

• Linen (fabric, open from the start): balanced, good for everything.
• Silk (fabric, 6 stars): light; climbs high in smoke but is blown about by the wind.
• Oiled canvas (fabric, 16 stars): heavy and fast; resists wind, glides far, climbs little in smoke.
• Willow (frame, open from the start): flexible and balanced.
• Reed (frame, 10 stars): wide wing; lands slow and soft but sinks sooner.
• Oak (frame, 22 stars): narrow and stiff; fast, agile, glides far, hard to land.

Every level can be cleared with 3 stars using the starting wing, linen and willow. Parts are not required; they are options that make the job easier.

Free Flight and optional ads

Free Flight unlocks when you finish level 4. You leap from Galata Tower and fly as far as you can. The route and the wind change every day and are the same for everyone that day; the server decides the day. Your score is your distance plus a carpet bonus: land on a carpet along the way with 1, 2 or 3 stars for 150, 300 or 600 points. Landing on any roof ends the flight. Your score goes on the leaderboard.

Watching an ad is always your choice:

• Wind boost: choose it before takeoff to get a tailwind for the first 6 seconds.
• Let the boatman launch you: if you fall into the sea in Free Flight, once per flight Hüsnü Reis throws you back into the air with his oar.

Apart from these, a break ad can appear only at the end of a level, when you move on to the next one. There are never ads in the middle of a flight.

Tips

• Check the turquoise reach band on the carpet bar first: if the carpet is inside the band, you can make it.
• If the marker falls short of the carpet, hold the upper half; the wing stretches and the marker moves forward.
• If the marker is past the carpet, brake with short presses on the lower half and pull the marker to the middle step by step.
• In a headwind, avoid needless braking; if the marker falls short, press the upper half.
• If the target is above you, enter the bakery smoke first, then land by the marker once you leave it at the top.
• Lift your finger near the ground; in the last 2 m Hezarfen raises his nose himself.
• For distant roofs, wait for the flag to snap taut: +2 m/s makes them easier to reach.
• If a level is tough, try another fabric or frame in the Workshop.

Common mistakes

• Holding the lower half right after the jump and never letting go: you sink steeply and cannot reach distant targets. If the marker falls short, press the upper half.
• Watching Hezarfen instead of the landing marker: the marker at the end of the dashed line tells you where you will land, not the character's position.
• Diving at the ground too steeply: a very steep drop becomes a hard landing and the flight ends.
• Holding the screen inside the bakery smoke: pressing up or down does nothing there; you have to wait until the climb ends.
• Letting go by the old plan after hitting a gull or a mast: you slowed down, so your landing spot has slid back.
• Thinking the level is over after landing on the wrong roof: you can jump again from there, you just get at most 2 stars in that level.
• Ignoring the wind direction: with a tailwind the marker slides forward, with a headwind it slides back, and your release moment changes with it.