osu!

What osu! does

osu! is a free-to-play multiplayer rhythm game developed and operated as an independent project by founder Dean Herbert (online alias 'peppy'), headquartered in Perth, Western Australia. Founded in 2007, the game is built on C# and the .NET framework, with its client released as open source under the ppy GitHub organization. A single downloadable client serves four distinct gameplay modes—osu! (click circles), osu!taiko (drum hitting), osu!catch (fruit catching), and osu!mania (piano-style keys)—and is distributed directly from osu.ppy.sh without third-party marketplace intermediaries. The game is supported by a community-driven beatmap content pipeline, a Featured Artist licensing program with more than 500 partnered musicians, and a structured competitive tournament scene. The platform reports more than 27.6 million registered players and is localized in over 25 languages.

The commercial model is intentionally lean and donation-driven. The base game is free with no pay-to-win mechanics; the principal paid offering is the osu!supporter tag, a non-recurring purchase that unlocks cosmetic and convenience benefits—custom profile covers, a yellow username color, friend and country rankings, increased beatmap favorites (1,000 vs. 100), expanded friend lists (1,000 vs. 500), early feature access, higher beatmap upload limits, osu!direct in-client search, and one free username change—without conferring gameplay advantages. Supplementary revenue comes from branded merchandise sold through the osu!store and from transaction processing handled by Xsolla as the authorized global payment distributor. The founder has stated that osu! will not pursue profitability as a primary objective and is funded entirely by player donations and supporter purchases, and it intentionally eschews advertising and outside partnerships that could compromise the player experience.

The company is organized as a founder-owned operation with approximately 103 employees, augmented by formal community governance: a Tournament Committee (publicly announced in July 2021) advises on official tournament support and badge eligibility, and a Performance Points Committee (publicly announced in 2021) oversees updates to the proprietary skill-ranking and star-rating algorithms. Player segments include rhythm game enthusiasts (primary consumers), beatmap creators and mappers (primary contributors), and tournament organizers and streamers (community anchors).

Name

osu!

Legal name

osu!

Website

https://osu.ppy.sh

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

osu! is a free-to-play multiplayer rhythm game founded in 2007, operated as a donation-funded independent project by founder Dean Herbert. It serves 27 million+ registered players across four gameplay modes, a community-built beatmap catalog, and a paid supporter tag.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rhythm Video Game

NAICS

Amusement Arcades (71312)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Live Operations & Game Management (Events, Economy Tuning, Content Drops) (MPAFAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Game Server Hosting & Community Infrastructure (private servers, matchmaking communities) (MPAFAIAF)

Keywords

• Rhythm video game
• Free-to-play gaming
• Community-driven content
• Competitive online multiplayer
• Open-source game client

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. osu!supporter Tag: Non-recurring payments for the osu!supporter tag which provides cosmetic perks including custom profile covers, yellow username color, extra beatmap favorites (1000 vs 100), more friends (1000 vs 500), early access to features, increased beatmap upload limits, osu!direct access, friend/country rankings, mod filtering, and one free username change. Does not provide competitive gameplay advantages.
2. Merchandise Store: Physical merchandise including products sold through the osu!store at osu.ppy.sh/store/listing
3. Payment Processing via Xsolla: Xsolla is listed as an authorized global distributor of osu!, handling payment processing for supporter tags and merchandise purchases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

osu! develops and distributes a free-to-play cross-platform rhythm game in which players click circles, hit drums, catch falling fruit, or press scrolling keys in time with music across four integrated game modes. The platform is sustained by a community-generated beatmap library, ranked matchmaking tied to a proprietary Performance Points algorithm, and monetised via voluntary osu!supporter tag purchases and a branded merchandise store, all run from a 103-person studio in Perth, Western Australia.

Product overview

osu! is a free-to-play rhythm game offering four distinct game modes: osu! (click circles), osu!taiko (drum hitting), osu!catch (fruit catching), and osu!mania (piano-style keys). The core game is supplemented by the osu!supporter tag premium membership offering enhanced profile customisation, additional beatmap upload limits, and features like osu!direct for quick beatmap downloads. The Featured Artists program provides licensed music for beatmapping, while the osu!store handles merchandise sales.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• osu!supporter: osu!supporter tag provides in-game perks such as extra profile customisation, improved web/game integration, more filter options in leaderboards and larger beatmap upload limits.

Products and services

• osu! rhythm game client
• osu!supporter tag
• osu!store merchandise
• Featured Artists music licensing program

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• XsollacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorXsolla is an authorized global distributor of osu!, handling payment processing for the osu!supporter tag and merchandise purchases. They provide the infrastructure for digital commerce transactions.
• Tournament Committee MemberscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Tournament Committee is a panel of skilled community organizers that advises on official tournament support, badge eligibility, and tournament sanctions. Members include recognized community contributors like Hivie, RandomeLoL, and Yasuho.
• Performance Points CommitteecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA panel of well-versed players and developers who facilitate and approve updates to performance points and star rating algorithms. Includes maintainers like StanR and tsunyoku who merge PP changes and write news posts.
• Featured Artists (Music Licensing Partners)coreTechnology or IntegrationOver 500 music artists licensed through the Featured Artist program including Camellia, UNDEAD CORPORATION, Imperial Circus Dead Decadence, and many more. These artists grant permission for their music to be used in osu! beatmaps.
• GitHub (ppy Organization)coreTechnology or Integrationosu! development uses GitHub under the ppy organization. The osu! client is open source. Wiki and news posts are managed through GitHub pull requests. The osu-wiki repository hosts documentation.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• PeroPeroGames (Phigros): Phigros is a Chinese mobile rhythm game that has captured significant community mindshare through novel chart mechanics and free distribution. It overlaps with osu!'s enthusiast persona, especially in Asian markets, and represents an emerging competitor for the next generation of rhythm players.
• Friday Night Funkin': Friday Night Funkin' is a free, open-source rhythm-battle game with strong UGC modding culture. While stylistically distinct, it competes with osu! for casual rhythm players and shares the community-modding ethos that defines osu!'s content pipeline.

Direct peers

• hasuhasuhasu (Muse Dash): Muse Dash is a side-scrolling rhythm-action game that competes for the same casual-to-midcore rhythm player audience. It shares osu!'s emphasis on licensed music and stylized anime aesthetics but is mobile-native and commercially monetized.
• Beat Games (Beat Saber): Beat Saber is a rhythm game where players slash blocks to music, the closest modern direct competitor to osu! in the rhythm-game category. Both rely on user-generated or curated music libraries, skill-based progression, and community-driven content, though Beat Saber is VR-first and commercial while osu! is PC and donation-funded.
• StepMania: StepMania is an open-source, community-driven rhythm game engine (DDR-style key charts) — the closest functional analogue to osu!'s open-source, UGC-driven philosophy. Both rely on community-created content, free distribution, and volunteer contributors, making StepMania the most structurally similar peer despite differing chart styles.
• Rayark (Cytus, Deemo): Rayark publishes mobile rhythm games (Cytus, Deemo, VOEZ) that compete for the same rhythm-game enthusiast persona osu! serves. Both operate skill-ranking systems and curated licensed music, but Rayark is mobile-native and commercially monetized while osu! is PC and donation-funded.
• lowiro (Arcaea): Arcaea is a mobile rhythm game that, like osu!, emphasizes skill-based scoring, a large curated music catalog, and competitive leaderboards. It is a direct competitor targeting the same rhythm-game enthusiast segment, though with mobile-first delivery and commercial monetization.

Others

• Discord: Discord is osu!'s primary community infrastructure partner — the official osu! Discord server (discord.gg/ppy) hosts tournaments, development discussions, and language-specific communities. Discord is an enabling platform rather than a competitor, but it is the most material ecosystem dependency for osu!'s community engagement.
• Xsolla: Xsolla is osu!'s authorized global payment processor for supporter tags and merchandise. As the commerce infrastructure layer, it is a critical enabling partner — comparable to how Stripe or Adyen would be tagged for other DTC or gaming businesses.

Broad incumbents

• SEGA (Project DIVA / maimai): Project DIVA and maimai are SEGA's established rhythm-game franchises, positioned as broad incumbents in the rhythm category with mainstream IP tie-ins and arcade distribution. They compete with osu! for casual rhythm players but operate under a very different arcade-and-console commercial model.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/osugame
• GitHubgithub.com/ppy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/osugame

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about osu!