How to download and install beatmaps from the beatmaps listing page and osu!direct, to get started with playing osu and the system requirements needed to play the game.
Overview
Osu!, the popular anime-inspired free-to-play rhythm game, developed, published and created by Dean “peppy” Herbert is a heavily community-based game that allows players to play around with songs that are called beatmaps.
Beatmaps are sets of game levels that include hit objects and are representative of one single song.
For people who are not familiar with the game, beatmaps are how you play the game, and they are made up of hit circles, sliders and spinners which are collectively known as hit objects or circles arranged at certain points in a song. So how are beatmaps added to osu?
Adding beatmaps to osu
Beatmaps are basically what you use to play the osu game. Beatmaps will be placed in different points of time in a song. The beatmap will be played with other music and a background, and the player basically needs to interact with the objects but to the rhythm of the beat of the music.
In order to play the game however, you will need to have your beatmaps ready. Beatmaps will need to be downloaded, so players will need to know how and where to get their beatmaps before they can begin playing osu.
How do I add beatmaps to osu?
In order to play the osu game, players will need to have their beatmaps ready to go, as they are the key component of what runs the game. Beatmaps are what a player will make use of to play the game by matching their beatmaps to the different hit objects and circles and following the rhythm and beat of the music.
There are two methods to add beatmaps and this can be done via the website or through osu!direct. Both methods will need a player to have an internet connection to download their beatmaps.
Downloading via the website will require you to go to the beatmap listing page to make your downloads, and to get through osu!direct, a player will need to have an osu!supporter tag to download directly from the osu platform.
Please remember that you need to follow the right steps to successfully download your beatmaps.
How to download beatmaps using the website?
Players will need to go to the beatmap listing page and sign themselves in to the website. They then need to find a song they would like to play and click on the download icon to save the beatmap they have chosen on their computer.
On their computers they need to locate and open the beatmap file with an OSZ extension. Osu! will then automatically do the rest and load the beatmap. If you somehow do not see your beatmaps, you as the player, will need to press “F5” in the Song Selection.
How to download beatmaps using osu!direct?
Downloading beatmaps can also be done directly on Osu! Players need to open osu and click on the osu!direct button on the right hand side of the main screen.
Look for and find the song you would like to play, and then double click on the song on the list or click “Download” on the right to download it.
To avoid downloading the video that will accompany the beatmap, click on “DL NoVideo” instead. When osu is done downloading it, it will load by itself. Press “F5” should they not show to re-process beatmaps.
Installing osu and the minimum system requirements
To get the osu game, your computer system will need a decent graphics card and a .NET framework 4+, which the installer will tell you to download. To install osu, you need to download the installer.
Once done, find and run the installer. While it runs, a 10-second period will allow you to choose the installation location.
When it has completed, osu will start and osu!direct will be used to download some starter beatmaps for you. Once ready, you will need to either sign in or register, choose whichever will apply to you.
Final Thoughts
The world of the osu game allows for players to play around with different sounds and songs through the use of beatmaps, which are used as the map to play accompanying music in the background.
The beatmap is intended to guide a sense of rhythm by the player. In order to play the game, however, beatmaps need to be installed and downloaded either from the beatmaps website or through osu!direct.
The game cannot be played without having beatmaps ready, and so ensuring you have an internet connection and the right system requirements for the game gets you started.