Before playing, make sure that your volume is turned up. You can test the volume by pressing the Esc key, located in the upper left-hand corner of the keyboard, which plays a short description of how to choose a game.

If you would like to change the computer's voice, first press Quit to exit the game. Then, go to Start->Control Panel->Speech. Then click on the tab called "Text to Speech" at the top, and choose which voice you would like to use from the drop-down menu for Voice Selection.

If you want to change any options, such as key delay, number of answer choices, or whether to show the current and correct answers, select the "Options" button. There will be a "Help" button in the window that pops up with instructions for setting the game's options.

To listen to the list of games, use the left and right arrow keys to cycle through the list. Press the down arrow key to hear a description of the game, if one exists. Use the up arrow key or the Enter key to select that game and start playing. The Esc key will allow you to begin at the beginning of the list of games.

There are 2 possible types of games to play, matching and category. In a matching game, you will hear a question followed by a prompt sound; the goal is to select the answer that matches the prompt sound. In a category game, you will hear a question, and the goal is to choose the answer that does not belong in the same category as the other answer choices.

When playing a game, use the left and right arrow keys to cycle through the list of answer choices. Press the down arrow key to listen to a hint, if one exists. In a matching game, the hint (and the picture, if one is displayed) is associated with the correct answer that the game player is trying to identify. In a category game, the hint (and the picture, if one is displayed) is associated with the current answer choice that the game player is on in the list. Use the up arrow key or the Enter key to select that answer choice as the correct answer. Press the Esc key to end the game and choose a new game.

To quit Hark the Sound, either select the "Quit" button or press the keys Alt + F4.