One of the most frequently asked questions we get with players on Air Hockey Blast is what is air hockey? In this blog post I will explain what air hockey is and how to play it.

What exactly is Air Hockey?

Air hockey, also known as glide hockey, is a type of game where two players compete against each other by scoring goals, using a puck, into the each others net on a table. An air hockey table causes the puck to hover above the surface by pushing air through tiny openings across the table. Players then use a paddle, commonly called a mallet, to strike a puck into their opponents goal.

If you want to play a game of Air Hockey check out our free game Air Hockey Blast

What is an air hockey table?

An air hockey table is pong-like tabletop surface where a game of air hockey is played. Even though there are visually different looking tables, they all share common traits. These include:

• 2 Goal Posts
• Halfway Divider

So for starters, all tables have two goal posts. These posts represent actual goals similar to traditional hockey. The objective is to try to make a puck into your opponents goal while defending your own. The second trait of all tables is that there is a halfway mark to divide the table into two sections. Players are only allowed to make contact with the puck on their half of the table. Outside of these two options, there are literally hundreds of variations of air hockey tables that you can play on.

What is an air hockey paddle?

An air hockey paddle, also known as a mallet, is round, disk-like object that players use to strike a puck into an opponents goal in air hockey. Across the years, different shapes, weights and colors have been used to create custom looking paddles that achieve greater speed and precision.

What is an air hockey puck?

A puck, or air hockey puck, is a disk that players strike into their opponents goal to make points in a game of air hockey. Similar to a puck in traditional hockey, an air hockey puck is generally more flat like a cd disk and made out of plastic so it glides across a table. Although not official, there have been custom shape disks such as triangles and stars created to add variation to an air hockey game.

Air Hockey and Table Hockey Similarities and Differences

As the names suggest, air hockey and table hockey have some similarities to each other. Both these two games are played on a table surface. The first is that both games have 2 goal posts. Even though they visually look different if you look at both they have two goals and the objective is to score in your opponents goal. The second similarity is that you play with a puck. This is different than other table top games like foosball or billiards where a ball is used.

However, outside of this there are some stark differences between air hockey and table hockey. For starters air hockey only uses two paddles, or mallets. That is one for each player, and each player can freely move the paddle anywhere on their half of the table. In table hockey there are several pre-fixed players distributed throughout the table. These players are controlled using similar handles to foosball, also known as table football. Because of this players have to move along predefined routes on the table. The second main difference is the the scoring. Air hockey games traditionally go up to 7 points whereas table hockey games usually go up to 10 points.