How to make an endless runner
How to make an endless runner with AI
Updated
Quick answer
Name a runner, a place and two moves, usually jump and slide, and Teleplay builds an endless runner with obstacles coming faster the longer you last. The engine has a family of its own for runners, and the score is the distance you ran.
Runners to play now
The prompt behind Moonroad Courier
A runner's sentence has a simple rhythm: who, where, which moves, what is in the way, and the goal. Here all five fit in one line.
Guide a desert-fox courier along a moonlit caravan road, jumping and sliding past ruins, scorpions and chasms to run as far as you can.
This prompt made Moonroad Courier
Choosing obstacles
Each obstacle should ask for exactly one answer, and the player should be able to tell which from a distance. Three types are enough to begin with.
| Obstacle | The answer | Example in a theme |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Jump | A scorpion, a rolling log, a mop bucket |
| High | Slide | A ruined arch, a low branch, a shop sign |
| Gap | Jump with timing | A chasm, a broken bridge, an open manhole |
Pacing a run
1.Set a gentle start
The first ten seconds should be survivable by anyone, so people get a run they feel good about.
2.Ramp the speed slowly
Too fast a ramp and every run ends at the same moment, so the score stops meaning anything.
3.Add something to collect
Coins placed along a risky line ask the player a question each time. Ask for them in the editor if the first build has none.
4.Share the best score
Set the game to anyone with the link and dare a friend to beat you.
Runners are a shared genre, and famous ones have famous heroes. Whatever you describe comes out as an original game with your own runner, never a copy of someone else's characters or art.
Questions
Is an endless runner good for phones?
Very. Two moves map well to touch, and games made with the code engine draw their own controls.
Can it have an ending instead?
Yes. Ask for a finish line, or plan 1 to 5 levels on Create.
Can it run in three lanes?
Ask for lanes and for swiping or pressing to change them. Teleplay's lane dodger family handles that kind of movement.
Can I change the runner's look after?
If you made the game, yes: pick the picture in the editor, say what to change, and a new version is drawn in the game's style.