Pole Vault — free browser game

Pole Vault distils the track-and-field event into a two-stage timing game. Every attempt asks two distinct skills: first the speed of your approach, then the angle of your release. The athlete starts running from the left toward the take-off box (the blue platform); a four-beat rhythm bar at the bottom of the HUD starts ticking with an indicator that slides to the right. On each beat — as the indicator crosses a centre ring — press Space or tap the screen; nailing all four beats sends the run-up gauge into the green, missing or pressing off-beat shaves it down. The moment the athlete hits the take-off box, the pole plants and the body arcs into the air; meanwhile a vertical 'RELEASE' indicator on the right glides up and down. To convert the pole's spring into upward height, release with Space (or tap) while the indicator is inside the green peak zone. Get it right and all the pole's energy becomes lift, sending the athlete cleanly over the bar; release too early or too late and the body sways sideways and knocks the bar down. The bar rises 0.10 m for every clearance (starting at 3.00 m), each failure burns a life, and three lives ends the round. Your score is the highest bar (cm) you've cleared. Tip: the distance between rings on the rhythm bar is fixed — focus on the slide, not on counting — and a tiny bit early is always better than a tiny bit late.