How to Create a 2D Platformer Game with Construct

Creating a 2D platformer game can sound daunting, but trust me, with the right tools, it’s actually a super fun and rewarding experience. Today, we’re going to dive into how you can create a 2D platformer game using Construct, a fantastic game development tool that’s beginner-friendly, yet powerful enough to create professional games.

I’ve worked with Construct before, and one of the things I love about it is how intuitive and easy-to-use it is. No coding experience? No problem! Construct uses a drag-and-drop visual scripting system, so you can focus on bringing your ideas to life without having to worry about complex programming.

Let’s get started, and I’ll guide you through each step of creating your very own 2D platformer game, complete with player movement, platforms, and obstacles. By the end of this guide, you’ll have a simple yet functional platformer game that you can build on and customize as you like.

Step 1: Setting Up Your Construct Project

The first step is to open up Construct. If you haven’t downloaded it yet, go to the official Construct website and get the free version to start experimenting. Once you’re in, click on “New Project” to begin. Here, you can give your project a name and choose a layout size. I recommend going with something like 800×600 for your game’s resolution; it’s a good, standard size for a 2D platformer.

Once your project is set up, you’ll land in the main Construct interface, where you can see your layout (the area where the game happens) and the event sheet (where we’ll define the logic for our game).

Step 2: Creating the Player Character

Now, it’s time to bring your character to life! You can use Construct’s built-in sprite editor, or you can import your own character graphics. For this guide, let’s keep things simple and use Construct’s built-in “Player” sprite.

• Right-click on your layout and select Insert New Object.
• Choose Sprite and click Insert.
• You’ll be prompted to import or draw your character. For simplicity, let’s just use a square or rectangle for now (you can always change it later!).

Next, we need to add player movement. This is where the magic happens!

1. Click on your sprite (the character) to select it.
2. In the Properties Bar, click on the Behaviors tab.
3. Click on Add behavior, then choose 8 Direction. This will allow your character to move around the screen using the arrow keys.

That’s it for basic movement! Now you have a character that can move left, right, up, and down. But we want to make it a platformer, so we need to add gravity and jumping.

Step 3: Adding Gravity and Jumping

To make the character feel like it’s in a platformer game, we need to simulate gravity, which makes the character fall when not on the ground, and add the ability to jump.

1. Select your player sprite again.
2. In the Behaviors tab, click Add behavior and select Platform. This automatically gives your sprite gravity and jumping capabilities.
3. You can adjust the jump strength and gravity in the Platform behavior properties to get the feel you want. For example, set Jump strength to 12 and Gravity to 30 to start with.

Now your character will jump when you press the up arrow and fall naturally when not on solid ground. But we need platforms for your character to jump on!

Step 4: Creating Platforms

Time to build your world! You can easily create platforms for your character to jump on.

1. Right-click again on your layout and select Insert New Object.
2. Choose Sprite to create a new object for your platform.
3. Draw a simple rectangle (or import a custom image) for your platform.
4. Place these platforms wherever you want your player to be able to walk and jump.

Now let’s make sure the platforms act like, well, platforms!

1. Select your platform object.
2. In the Behaviors tab, click Add behavior and choose Solid. This tells the game that the platform is something the player can land on.

Now, your player will be able to jump onto and walk across the platforms.

Step 5: Adding Obstacles and Challenges

No platformer is complete without obstacles! Let’s add something to make your game a bit more challenging, like spikes or an enemy.

1. Create a new sprite for your obstacle (let’s say spikes).
2. You can add a simple rectangle or even an image of spikes.
3. Place them on the layout, making sure they’re in places where the player can run into them while jumping.

To make the spikes deadly, we need to create an event in the Event Sheet to handle the collision.

1. Open your Event Sheet (where the game logic happens).
2. Add a new condition: On Collision Between Player and Spikes.
3. Add an action to this condition: Player -> Destroy (or any other consequence, like resetting the player’s position to a checkpoint or losing a life).

Now, your player character will die when they touch the spikes. You can easily tweak the obstacle to make it more complex, or add different enemies and hazards.

Step 6: Scoring and Collectibles

A classic feature in platformer games is collecting items and scoring points. Let’s add a collectible item, like a coin, and display the score.

1. Create a new sprite for your coin. Place several coins on your level.
2. Go to your Event Sheet and add a new condition: On Collision Between Player and Coin.
3. Add an action: Coin -> Destroy, and add an action to increase the score: Add to Global Variable Score by 1.
4. In your layout, create a Text Object to display the score. Link it to the Global Variable Score.

Now, every time the player touches a coin, it’s collected, and the score increases.

Step 7: Testing and Polishing

It’s time to test your game! Click on the Preview button in Construct to play your game and see how it feels. You might notice a few things that need tweaking, such as:

• The jump might be too high or low—adjust the jump strength in the Platform behavior.
• The gravity might feel too strong—lower the gravity setting.
• Platforms or obstacles might need to be moved to improve gameplay.

Polish the design by adding backgrounds, improving your character’s appearance, or even adding sound effects and music. You can import music and sound files to make your platformer game even more immersive.

Step 8: Exporting Your Game

Once you’re happy with your game, Construct allows you to export it to various platforms. You can export your game as an HTML5 file to play in a web browser or even as a desktop application for Windows, Mac, or Linux. There are also options for exporting to mobile platforms like iOS and Android (note: this may require a paid version of Construct).

Creating a 2D platformer game with Construct is a super fun and rewarding process! Whether you’re creating your first game or adding more complexity to an existing one, Construct’s intuitive drag-and-drop interface makes game development easy and accessible. Now you know the basics—player movement, platforms, obstacles, scoring, and collectibles. From here, you can continue to refine and expand your game, adding more features like power-ups, levels, and even enemies.

I hope this guide has helped you get started on your journey to making your very own 2D platformer game. So, go ahead and start creating, and who knows—maybe your game will be the next big hit! Have fun with it, and always keep experimenting with new ideas. Happy game developing!

Photo by FOX ^.ᆽ.^= ∫