Darts 501

About Darts 501

Darts 501 plays the real game rather than a simplified version of it: you start on 501, subtract every throw, and have to finish exactly. That checkout arithmetic is what separates darts from a pure aiming game, and it is why the last hundred points take longer than the first four hundred.

There is also a 9-dart challenge for the ambitious, a world tournament against AI opponents, and a two-player mode for settling things directly. Being silent and mouse-only makes it one of the easier games here to keep open in a quiet room.

How to play

Aim with the mouse and throw by clicking, or swipe with a finger on touch devices. Play a traditional 501 leg — subtract each throw from your total and finish on exactly zero — or take the 9-dart challenge. Choose the two-player mode to face a friend, or the world tournament to work through the AI field.

Controls

• Mouse — aim and throw
• Finger swipe — throw on touch devices
• 2 player mode supported

Tips to win

• Treble 20 is worth chasing early, but switch to setting up your checkout once you drop under 170.
• Leave yourself an even number — a double finish is far easier to hit than a bullseye.
• Consistent aim beats ambitious aim: the single 20 bed still wins legs.

Darts 501 strategy guide

Aim with the mouse and click to throw, or swipe on a touchscreen. The input is simple; the arithmetic is the game. In 501 you start at 501 points and subtract every throw, and you must finish on exactly zero. Overshooting busts the turn and puts your score back where it started, so the last hundred points are a different game from the first four hundred.

Treble twenty early, then stop chasing it. The maximum-scoring approach is worth taking while your total is high, because a bust costs you nothing but a turn. Once you are under about 170, accuracy becomes worth more than ambition: hitting a comfortable number that leaves you a clean finish beats scoring six more and leaving yourself an awkward one.

Set up the double you want, not the one you get. Because a leg must end on a double, the shot before the finish matters as much as the finish itself. Leaving yourself on 32 is a good position, because if you miss the double sixteen and hit a single, you are on 16 and can try again. Leaving yourself on an odd number forces you to spend a dart just making the total even.

The nine-dart challenge is a different discipline. Where 501 rewards managing your way down, the nine-dart mode demands perfection from the first throw — there is no margin to recover a bad dart. Treat it as a target practice mode rather than a match, and use it to groove the throw you will rely on in tournament legs.

Play the friend, not the board. Against the AI field in the world tournament you can settle into your own rhythm. Against a friend in the two-player mode, the pressure of a close finish is where mistakes come from — and the player who keeps doing ordinary arithmetic while the other rushes tends to win. Work out your required score before you aim, every single turn.

Darts 501 FAQ