Free · Instant play · No download
Nova Hop: a free online orbit-hopping game about one perfectly timed tap
Nova Hop puts your ship on a tight orbit around a planet and gives you exactly one input: hop to the next orbit before this one runs out. Time the jump onto the planet right in front of you for a safe pass, or aim past it — skipping a planet lands you a hundred-point bonus, but drag your feet and circling too long quietly costs you points instead. Twenty planets clear a level; clear it and the whole run speeds up. It's a lean arcade space hopper built entirely around one clean tap, playable straight in the browser.
Quick facts
- Genre: arcade · hyper-casual · orbit hopper
- Mode: single-player, endless one-tap run
- Platform: desktop or phone browser, portrait orbit view
- Price: nothing to pay, no account needed
- Levels: 20 planets per level, then speed rises
How to play Nova Hop
Nova Hop only asks one thing of you: hop at the right moment. Everything else — skipping for bonus points, pacing yourself against the level's speed, deciding when a level's twenty planets are nearly cleared — grows out of that single timed tap.
- 1
Watch your orbit
Your ship circles the current planet on a ring — the timing of your next hop starts the moment you land.
- 2
Hop to the next orbit
Tap, click, or press Space to leap onto the planet ahead of you and keep the run going.
- 3
Skip for bonus points
Aim past the nearest planet to land on one further out — each planet you skip over adds a hundred points.
- 4
Don't circle too long
Staying on one orbit for a full loop instead of hopping costs you ten points, so a hop is safer than waiting.
- 5
Clear twenty planets
Passing twenty planets closes out a level and opens the next one at a faster pace.
Controls
Desktop
- Space bar or a mouse click sends your ship hopping to the next orbit
- P pauses the run, and pressing it again picks up where you left off
- M mutes the game's audio without leaving the run
- R jumps straight into a fresh attempt after a game over
Phone & tablet
- A single tap anywhere on the screen triggers the same hop as the desktop keys
- Nova Hop reads one clean tap — there's no swipe or hold gesture to learn
- The portrait layout keeps your ship and the next orbit both in view on a phone screen
Why players like Nova Hop
One input, real timing pressure
Every decision in Nova Hop comes down to a single tap — the challenge is entirely about when you make it.
Bonus points for skipping ahead
Landing on a distant orbit instead of the nearest one pays a hundred-point bonus for every planet you clear in between.
Levels that keep raising the pace
Every twenty planets cleared opens a faster, tighter level, so a run never settles into a fixed rhythm.
One tap works the same on any screen
The identical single-tap hop carries over from a mouse click or Space bar to a bare phone screen.
Tips for Nova Hop
- Hop before your orbit completes a full circle. Circling all the way around costs ten points, more than most single hops are worth.
- Line up a skip when the next two orbits are clear. Passing over one planet is worth a hundred points if you land clean on the one beyond it.
- Use the pause key between levels. A level jump also raises the speed, so a beat to reset your focus helps more than it did in the last level.
- Keep your eyes on the incoming orbit, not your ship. The ring you're about to catch tells you more about timing than watching your own position.
- Retry immediately with R. Because Nova Hop is a single continuous run, restarting fast keeps your timing sense fresh.
- Favor a safe hop over a risky skip late in a level. A missed skip attempt near twenty planets costs more progress than banking a smaller, sure gain.
Who is Nova Hop for?
High-score chasers
Enjoy a simple loop that rewards shaving fractions of a second off their timing, run after run.
One-button game fans
Prefer a game that lives entirely on a single input rather than juggling several controls at once.
Players with a spare minute
Can drop into a run, hop through a handful of planets, and stop without losing any real progress.
Scoring & winning
Nova Hop hands out points for every planet you pass, with a hundred-point bonus each time you skip over one to land further out. Circling a single planet for a full loop instead of hopping costs ten points, so waiting is rarely free. Clearing twenty planets closes out a level and opens the next one at a higher speed, and the run keeps going — and your score keeps climbing — until a mistimed hop ends it.
Frequently asked questions
What is Nova Hop?+
Nova Hop is a free online one-button arcade game: tap to hop your ship from orbit to orbit, skip planets for bonus points, and keep going as long as your timing holds.
What orientation does Nova Hop play in?+
Portrait. Nova Hop's orbit ring is built for a tall, narrow screen on both phone and desktop.
How do Levels work in Nova Hop?+
Each level runs twenty planets long. Clear all twenty and the next level begins immediately, with faster orbits and less room for error.
Why did I lose points without crashing?+
Letting your ship circle a single planet all the way around instead of hopping costs ten points — the run doesn't end, but the delay isn't free.
Does Nova Hop work on a phone?+
Yes. The entire game runs on one tap, so a phone browser plays it the same way a mouse or Space bar does on desktop.
Can I pause a run?+
Yes, on desktop. Pressing P freezes the current run, and pressing it again picks up exactly where you left off.
Privacy
GamePix hosts Nova Hop and loads it inside the embedded frame on this page. Any ads you see mid-run belong to GamePix's own network, not What Games Play. Hopping between planets needs no signup or personal detail.
Ready for one more hop?
Line up the next orbit and see how many planets — and how many skips — you can string together before a mistimed hop ends the run.
↑ Play Nova Hop
