hololive Dreams

EASY / NORMAL: controls & practice

A foundation guide for reading and hitting notes on EASY / NORMAL. Change one thing at a time—speed, timing, or difficulty—then move to a suitable HARD chart.

Updated: 15 Nov 2026

Start EASY / NORMAL at a readable speed

EASYWatch the judgment line

Follow the music and make each action clean.

NORMALCombine two actions

Read simultaneous hits and taps during holds without rushing.

Next stepTry one HARD chart

Do not wait to clear every NORMAL; choose a HARD you can finish.

Read the next group above the judgment line

The current hit is at the bottom; upcoming notes are above it. Look slightly ahead to read their positions and count. (Illustration.)

Faster notes alone are not progress. Start at a speed where you can separate the note to hit now from the next one.

Learn five note types by action

Tap

Tap once as the blue note reaches the line. Alternate hands for fast runs instead of chasing every note with one finger.

Hold / slide

Hold from the start and follow the green path. Keep holding through a normal end; follow every checkpoint.

Flick

For a pink arrow, slide your finger across the screen. It need not be upward. A tap followed by lifting your finger can miss the flick.

Flick ending

Follow the hold to its final arrow, then flick. Releasing as soon as you notice the arrow is too early.

Accent

Yellow changes the accent, not the underlying action. Tap a tap and flick a flick; do not rush because the effect looks different.

[2] / [3]

Give your first three runs separate purposes

Run 1: finish
After a miss, return attention to the next note.
Run 2: fix one thing
Focus on only one of flicks, holds, or simultaneous hits.
Run 3: confirm
Keep settings and grip unchanged to check whether it helped.

Fixes by symptom

After the flick, prepare for the next tap

● Left hand L● Right hand R

1. Keep the flick short

2. Move the right finger to the centre

If the following tap misses, check for an oversized swipe. Try a shorter movement and a direction that makes the return easier. (Touch-control illustration.)

Symptom	Next thing to try
Only holds break	Keep contact from start through end; add a flick only where an end arrow appears.
Only flicks miss	Use a short slide rather than a touch-and-lift; use the direction that stays reliable for you.
One side of simultaneous hits is late	Read the two same-height notes as a pair and hit together. If one hand is late, check its position before the pair.
FAST / SLOW repeats	Compare on the same chart and audio route, changing one setting at a time.

What NORMAL adds

Keep the left hold; tap with the right

● Left hand L● Right hand R

Avoid lifting the left finger with the right tap. Check a broken hold separately from a missed tap. (Touch-control illustration.)

Tap while holding

Keep one finger down along the hold path and tap with the free side. Assign roles first instead of trying to move both at once.

Two close notes

Before counting them, decide whether they alternate or land together. Raise speed only after you can tell.

Flick at a hold end

Learn the hold and flick separately before combining them. Do not add a flick when there is no end arrow.

Treat visibility and timing as different problems

Choose what to adjust from the pattern of errors

FAST / SLOW bias across the song↓ Check audio output and timing

Errors only in one difficult passage↓ Check fingering and where you look

Compare with a familiar song; do not change settings and technique together. (Illustration.)

Use speed or lane visibility for crowding, and timing adjustment for repeated FAST/SLOW. Someone else’s values are a starting example, not a universal setting across devices and audio routes.

[4]

Live options: note speed & timing

When to move from NORMAL to HARD

You finish reliably
A full combo is not required. Choose a chart you can finish and describe where it breaks down.
Choose one approachable HARD
Prefer a familiar song; you need not jump to that song’s harder chart immediately.
Keep permission to step back
If reading collapses, return to NORMAL and isolate the action. Lowering difficulty is not failure.

HARD / EXPERT: song-by-song practice Song catalog, levels & jackets

Scope of this foundations guide

Control descriptions use official public guidance; setting experiments are general practice suggestions informed by player notes. This guide does not verify device-specific values, every chart, or the current in-game UI.

References & image credits

Open reference list (5)

Official source ↗Learn five note types by action
Official X: consecutive flick guidance ↗Accent
Official X: hold-end guidance ↗Accent
nanagi: player notes on settings and timing ↗Treat visibility and timing as different problems
Official Ver.1.2.0 update, 29 September 2026 ↗