Code a Platformer Game | 1. The Basics

Want to learn how to code a platformer game in Scratch? You've come to the right place! - I'm griffpatch, and I'm bringing together all I've learned about making bitmap sprite collision based platformers and I'm putting it into this brand new series. No fancy scrolling or lists this time around, just fun simple scratch coding and the good old scratch costume editor! This series is suitable for both Scratch beginners, and advanced coders alike. We are going to cover player animation, advanced wall sliding and jumping, sloping platforms with automated player foot placement, moving platforms that can push the player around, and hopefully a lot more! Let's see how things go! In this first episode we lay the groundwork and get things moving with a basic "Guy" character :D. Scratch On guys!
🚀 Boost Your Creativity with Griffpatch
The Griffpatch Academy will take you from "Gamer to Game Creator"
Learn more at 👉 griffpatch.academy 👈
😺 Scratch was developed by the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. See scratch.mit.edu
👀 Next Episode #2 - • Code a Platformer Game...
🐱 Starter Project Game Assets - scratch.mit.edu/projects/5605...
🐱 Scratch Studio (post project here) - scratch.mit.edu/studios/30180...
👀 Playlist for this series - • Code a Platformer Game
❤️ Scratch Addons - scratchaddons.com/
📹 Video Editing Software - techsmith.z6rjha.net/5bajbo
-------------Video Chapters-------------
0:00 Intro
2:38 backdrop
3:15 Gravity
4:33 Ground Collisions
8:46 Jumping
9:27 Walking
11:14 Rethink and Innovate!
15:24 Horizontal Collisions
17:14 Fix Jumping
18:37 Stuck to ceiling bug
19:32 Mess around with the Physics
21:43 Outro

[@griffpatch]

Next Episode #2 - kzbin.info/www/bejne/fpWpqZSsiKpsfpo Starter Project Game Assets - scratch.mit.edu/projects/560596896/ Scratch Studio (post project here + get help) - scratch.mit.edu/studios/30180226/

[@NemoDpro]

Thx

[@leothebudgie676]

@@HeyEmricYT You just right click on the empty space

[@jayloplayz]

where is the cat character? u r using in the intro. Please may i have it :D

[@HeyEmricYT]

@Henry Chan Thank you, I love scratch addons

[@pradeeprawal6208]

@griffpatch can you give the link for the source code of this

[@confusioned2249]

Griffpatch is like that one teacher who everyone wished they had

[@KurttheKing]

Well, it's true! :)

[@LeReubzRic]

yes, i wish griffpatch was my code tutor (i dont have one)

[@homie3991]

TRUE

[@Placuch0]

Fr

[@UltraDestroya48]

True

[@Dxuser5]

Something I really like about these tutorials is that instead of just telling us what to do, you instead show us steps to get to that finalized mechanic. It really makes it feel like we’re learning with you and it’s unlike anything that I’ve seen (as a casual amateur scratch coder)

[@nguyentram1483]

And he explains what each script does

[@blaze-the-Real]

Thank you. Now I see what makes him stand out from the others.

[@utchiha_madara2842]

Bro how can I do an animation for my Player for goin left and going right and jump?

[@Dxuser5]

@@utchiha_madara2842 he explains that later

[@ink-sane8603]

If you want a stupidity simple way, add a point in direction (90) for right movement and point in direction (-90) for left

[@shadowreaper4811]

Not only did this legend deliver great games, he also taught us to make our own.

[@Slxyer-_-hehe]

I mean you're not wrong.

[@user-gq4nd9fo3w]

I agree so much!

[@user-xg5hp2ck3j]

Right

[@NilanjanaBhadore]

right he is a legend who make games and he is satisfied with small games😃

[@NilanjanaBhadore]

he is you probably did not see his video😡

[@provenance1]

thank you! just made my first ever game following your advice! can't wait to see what else i can make now. ill be following along the rest of this tutorial series. id like to say thank you for going through every step and actually showing us your thought process and teaching us problem solving not just the solution.

[@rykerhopkins7598]

Im making my game now

[@Greyo19]

Episode 1: Simple Platformer Episode 15: "Normal" platformer with cloud and auto-save, skin selection and great community ...

[@accountdisbanded]

Yes

[@Baburun-Sama]

Episode BUB.BOB??: Bubble Bobble-styled Platformer with Dragons and Bubbles.

[@iggyzpro3996]

Yes

[@Mangsterade]

thats just level 2

[@kandykandykandykane]

I cri | a platformer

[@lemonboom589]

Ah this brings me some good memories from when I decided I wanted to make something more complex in scratch, proceeded by discovering griffpatch and seeing every video from the scrolling platformer series

[@Papaswee1]

I've been watching your videos for a while, and everytime I wanted to make a platformer, I would watch the whole series of Code a Platformer Game. Thank you for these amazing tutorials, Griffpatch!

[@liamarapoglu]

You are the master of Scratch. You are using that skill to teach other young coders. I admire you.

[@user-gq4nd9fo3w]

Yes

[@user-gq4nd9fo3w]

I'm actually a young coder no joke 😂

[@Scyr0]

God of scratch

[@Mozific]

Nobody asked buddy@@user-gq4nd9fo3w

[@NilanjanaBhadore]

True he is a legend who also teach other scratchers😍

[@IcyParkiet]

the fact that a couple months ago i needed the whole list of tutorials but now only need a refresh for physics and implemented an undertale fight to this game needing only like 10 minutes of this and 1 minute of the fight tutorial is insane, thanks griffpatch

[@griffpatch]

My pleasure, great work!

[@IcyParkiet]

@@griffpatch i dont know if you have, but a tutorial on undertale fights would be very interesting, especially when combining it with this

[@conroysmith3348]

😊​@@griffpatch

[@yeaphongshengmoe8272]

Never would have thought I would learn how to code. Hats down to this legend.

[@user-zo6tj4gt8e]

I feel like I really got better at scratch thnx to this video, I just want to thank griffpatch for helping me become better at scratch and seeing things differently. And that to everything there can be a simple solution if your willing to find it, thank you so much.

[@duckicodes]

Even tho this is a scratch video, it is still great to see that the way griffpatch explains things, you can interpret it in other languages

[@insanity5680]

Dear Griffpatch! I lOVE your videos, and how you teaching us to program amazing games. I so enjoyed your videos, and it’s so fun to learn your incredible codes! P.S. This: “Hello, fellow scratchers!” melts my heart❤

[@hayleycarter7737]

griffpatch=cool 😎

[@ekeditz2022]

@@hayleycarter7737 SO TRUE

[@TexterBox]

@@hayleycarter7737 yes, me agree

[@Poteto88Potato]

true

[@miaoxie2946]

Me too,me too

[@jonathanremlinger6927]

Griffpatch is a great teacher! I am trying to make my platformer somewhat like the bouce series on scratch, and he really shows how you can tweak the game to do what you want to do!

[@eggyZR]

Hey griffpatch, just wanna say thx SO MUCH for how well you explained this. You are so great. Keep it up!!!

[@TheGamerAnimator]

griff is the best teacher ever and when i tried to ask my friend how to make platformer my friend just said random concept that i never understood but griff is very easy to understand

[@10carries]

This is the first time I actually understood how to make collision in Scratch. I have tried a lot of tutorials but this one makes the most sense. Thx for making this ur awesome griffpatch.

[@10carries]

@Luke Johnson what do you need help with?

[@annajoji2941]

I love how you explained everything this just made my project for school feel so much easier!

[@StorryMorey]

Griffpatch is my favorite teacher, with a game like this and some other tutorials like main menu's make this game so much more exciting!

[@gyanibabu2023]

13:51 I was just about to check your code for collision detection while i was working on another game, but when you said to rethink and innovate, i just made my own script and IT WORKS!!!!!

[@thomasemanuelgomes4934]

can u say

[@GeekSHO]

I use Scratch in my classroom, and as a relatively inexperienced Scratcher, I love this tutorial. I created a similar tutorial that covers about half this material in double the time. So thank you for organizing it in such a intuitive way!

[@qwertyuiop.lkjhgfdsa]

@Leoben Jacobs Oops! -Google Translate to English

[@GamingMister]

This was so fun to make and I loved how you described everything!🎮

[@user-hx9it4ku7b]

I spent 2 hours working on this and my character is swimming in the floor

[@Catmeowfs]

Ok

[@denizesmerf4]

Same!

[@m4shermanfan225]

Skill issue?

[@vinatreivi4152]

My character has the ability to fly and teleport idk why😐

[@Irenti]

Gravity is wrong then​@@vinatreivi4152

[@Cod3Play]

Griffpatch: 14:04 "No looking back now" literally him 4 seconds later: "LOOKING BACK TO WHERE..."

[@kathrynsullivan8024]

Woooow

[@dilig3s41]

@@kathrynsullivan8024 CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP

[@Cray_Button]

lol

[@aanchal2357]

@@Cray_Button I know

[@Thefluffybear]

#Cod3Play Lol

[@adelynchung8996]

I acknowledge you for using a moment to produce the video! I've stayed on Scratch for years. Nevertheless, I don't understand how to execute a Scratch platformer; this enhanced my Scratch programming. I'm exceptionally delighted to view Part 2's video!

[@LightOfMyLife227]

Most excited to learn about how to make my character move and how to make them interact with the environment

[@AntiZoophileOvergunner]

Another note: the Falling variable can also allow you to hold the jump button to jump higher until it reaches the coyote-jump limit

[@Kooczsi]

thats cool, i never thought about that.

[@eazyideaz9527]

This is the best scratch tutorial I have ever seen yet, I've been following you for a while so keep the great work up!

[@1mah0td0g]

I tried using this when I started scratch, and it seemed so hard, but now, I come back and it is so easy to do this, great tutorial!

[@dagamer667_]

What's your scratch username? I would like to see one of your levels.

[@1mah0td0g]

@@dagamer667_ Ikeahotdog

[@dagamer667_]

@@1mah0td0g lol, alr

[@Dichhya1]

keep up the great work all of your games are so cool!

[@wolfensponge_fan]

I will say this once to my demotivated scratchers out there, not all platformers have to scroll. Sure, it's common but that doesn't mean it has to apply to your game as well. The man did his magic, just hear him out.

[@CfopCubing]

Griffpatch, your amazing. You are the most followed scratcher on scratch, and the best scratcher ever in my opinion. Not only that, but I believe you are also the best teacher on scratch as well. That is *extremely* rare to have someone the best at something also be the best teach of it. Because of this, you are able to bring up any level of scratcher higher in their knowledge of scratch. Your amazing Griffpatch, so keep using your gift for God! I think that's so cool that you play the drums for your church!!

[@amtulj5284]

I agreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[@scratchtv123]

correct

[@ahmedelmakki2757]

true, keep using your gift for god griffpatch, i guess?

[@nguyendoany6.161]

I think Will_Wam is amazing scratcher too. And I agree Griffpatch is amazing scratcher, good teacher and most followed scratcher

[@tuanhungnguyen4343]

Appel was his best game ever

[@leostadt3164]

Wow, I tried making a platformer and started with basic color recognition. But quickly ran into problems like passing through barriers that you shouldn't be able to pass through. Then I watched this video and BAM! This just made my day in how interesting scratch can be. Thanks!

[@IamLEGENDdragonball]

Thanks! Griffpatch, I tried to make platformers before, but I didn't know how to make, until I came through this series!

[@danielsotoparra21]

Fabulous work, Griff!

[@HelliTheHellionWarden]

It’s like learning from an online lesson, the steps are clear and very detailed. New sub ❤ you’re a legend.

[@albertoedgar831]

online lesson aint like that

[@itsplatinum101]

*Coding* Expectation: We'll name the costume 'Player Asset 1.0' Reality: Let's christen him 'Guy'

[@digidesigningwithanant677]

lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol

[@Slxyer-_-hehe]

griffpatch you're a great teacher btw I was most excited to learn about wall jumping :)

[@C4llM31v4n]

griffpatch is so good at explaining and it's more fun than the other tutorials!

[@Hdjekdndsmdkdkdndjehde]

i just realized that you can also put the jumping script in the if touching color or level it will just fall back down without all of the other time things that is really cool!

[@reflex3777]

This was one of the best and most interesting tutorial I have ever seen! Your explanation and code is very neat too. Thank you Griffpatch!

[@gamingfizz1803]

I feel like him, knowing what most of this code means, and ive used most of this code, but even as a 2 year old scratcher that was self taught, I still learned stuff, thanks!

[@olobolo8547]

Hey, Griffpatch I love your tutorial because the walking and jumping work way better than all of my projects and I probably will keep using that for my other projects!

[@griffpatch]

Glad I could help!

[@icebergs9691]

Yeah Same

[@utchiha_madara2842]

@@griffpatch Bro how can I do an animation for my Player for goin left and going right and jump?

[@fastkiwi9646]

Make separate costumes, then make the sprite shuffle through them in order

[@LilDogeSmall2450]

always🙂

[@Soliscrat22]

Since your reading this, I just wanted to say thanks for reading your viewers comments, but also for the amazing tutorial! The collision system worked perfectly with my top down scroller of all things. Keep up the good work! 👍 😀

[@kaemari24]

griffpatch is my go to youtuber for creating games i have a group with my friends at school and we use my account on scratch and we create and remix games thx for everything griffpatch

[@Lukezzi-ki6zi]

Thanks so much! Im planning to create a platformer game and this saves me like an year!

[@naman25sharma]

I loved the way he explained all the things in this video. Thankyou for such a good video!

[@speeed212]

Thank you! This really helped me so much! You are an awesome scratcher, keep it up!

[@damilolaowaseye6608]

Griff is the master of anything. Thanks for this video.

[@SavorTheFlavor24]

i love how even though he is famous, he taught us the things that will make us famous out of pure generosity. (also, i am so jealous seeing his messages go up by the minute lol)

[@makskaminski1758]

Your scratch videos are good because they explain everything clearly and tell you how they work.I love your videos.

[@svshhsbs]

"hello fellow scratchers" never gets old edit: oh cool im famous

[@ActuallyHyperionOS]

Yes

[@icydragon3874]

It NEVER gets old, not even a little

[@mariofan1983]

It reminds me of "Hello, this is YOUR daily dose of internet"

[@paderhoot6835]

So true

[@juliantello5740]

YEP YOU HAVE REASON

[@siso707]

This guy is the god of scratch bow down to him

[@pedroplata9814]

griffpatch knows how to make a simple tutorial video entertaining! Keep it up griffpatch!!

[@thebegdyt]

Ya!

[@yeetusdeletus6949]

the jump function, gravity function and the collision is really useful

[@C-Zonz]

Awesome Tutorial! I love platformer games and now, I get to make my own!😊

[@Gemster-uw4ig]

Wow!!! Griffpatch really does have a good coding sense!

[@streetwiseromeo]

GREAT tutorial. Best I have come across, your step by step guide is perfect. Clean and easy to follow. Well done Griffpatch.

[@kellyaamir5194]

Yes

[@tdubmorris5757]

Griffpatch, there is no better scratch youtuber better than you. Keep up the amazing work 😸

[@CzesKrit1kal]

Great Video as Always! Keep it Up

[@roboboy3773]

After I watched this video, my plans of making my video on making platformers on scratch is now ruined. This should be the engine that everyone should be using, The only detailed 'How to make a platformer' video. Nice Job Griffpatch!

[@griffpatch]

There's never enough videos on this subject :) - It can be so varied, and there's so many things to consider... the more the merrier :D

[@roboboy3773]

@Leoben Jacobs ??

[@roboboy3773]

@Leoben Jacobs ???

[@roboboy3773]

@Leoben Jacobs what do you mean?

[@nayazqazi7816]

@@roboboy3773 Dont question it man

[@rocky707]

I had a few issues (Just me making mistakes like changing the y by x speed/steps), but all of them are fixed now! Thank you for this amazing tutorial, I have wanted to know how to make a platformer game for ages and I love your games! Keep up the amazing work, everything about this video is amazing!

[@JackassJackett]

i'm encountering the same issue, can you please explain how you fixed it?

[@Koelekast24]

@@JackassJackett I had the same issue but I know how to fix it. You need to put a 'change x by 0' block in 'repeat until not touching (color)' in define fix overlap. Let me know if this helped you

[@henrystickminyt7947]

griffpatch you the best teacher a dude could ever wish for thanks man!

[@mixishere]

i like the sticking to the ceiling as a thing where you hold on to the ceiling

[@jeditz8]

Griffpatch : Let's cover simple Scratch Platform Physics! Me : Gulp.... I am forgetful...... Me : It's not simple for me ..... Griffpatch : Let's cover everything! Me : Woohoo!

[@darkscratcher52]

🍋

[@unnofrancoc.deleon6502]

Oh cool you pressed the JOIN button next to the SUBSCRIBE button

[@veto_real]

🐱

[@jeditz8]

@@unnofrancoc.deleon6502 yeah it includes thesee

[@jeditz8]

3:10 wow that's simple Me : Draws super intense course

[@Aladinwerty2]

This tutorial has helped me so much, and it's explained so well!

[@PLACEHOLDER621]

Legend I came back to this after a few months when the last time it didn’t work for me today it worked fine thanks for the help

[@gerardsingson436]

Griffpatch is the mumbo jumbo of scratch

[@Jayviolikesspyro]

Yeah

[@TheDefaultYoutuber51313]

Yeah that's true!!

[@DeezyPlays2029]

Yes

[@jasmineks4702]

😂😂

[@GGHooligan]

Fr

[@niveditharajan6222]

i really love this platformer (and the movement of the player is ace!)

[@anyadimgba]

18:15 Wow! An If Statement inside an If Statement inside a forever loop. This project must be really rad!

[@SaraiMarrero-qs1vz]

nothing compares with doing something wrong then getting it right cuz listening to griffpatch

[@iDarkBS]

Nothing to say. Started scratch last month and my project is +10000%. Best scratch teacher!!!

[@maxigugutheartist8381]

I do have some problems with character animations so I’m pretty exited to learn that.

[@Your_new_home3-ju9wh]

20:38 melted my heart

[@melissaarndt833]

12

[@user-gh6my9cl5x]

I haven't been on Scratch for a long time and I NEED to learn this.😸

[@nocturnalnoivern5565]

Griffpatch: Let's make 3D game with realistic physics! Scratch Trending: We Warship gEnErIc pLaTfOrMeRs Griffpatch: This is my most generic platformer : *insert completed game* Scratch News: Least generic platformer on scratch trending by Griffpatch!

[@schonc]

Thank you for spicing up my year Grifpatch!😀

[@themythicalworld9034]

GRIFFPATCH U HAVE TEMPTED ME TO MAKE THIS!

[@uwuilike12]

Learning this will be fun

[@Enderia2]

The amazing thing about these tutorials is that you don’t have to follow them EXACTLY when coding. You just have to get the general concept right which he tells you.

[@bloonsfamily2066]

yeah, one of the few tutorials where after them i was making my own stuff somewhat differently than the tutorial

[@monkeycomet]

Whoa!This will make my game 10,000x times better!Thank You so much for this series :O

[@prozayk5908]

Which game

[@monkeycomet]

@@prozayk5908 My upcoming games lol

[@prozayk5908]

@@monkeycomet have you made any games yet

[@monkeycomet]

@@prozayk5908 Yes...I have a Scratch account with the name of @jramcomet

[@prozayk5908]

@@monkeycomet I followed you 😑

[@GriffDude]

Scratch should ask to use this tutorials it will help A LOT of new scratchers

[@isthatlalo]

the amount of times i need to stop the vid for this nika is a lot

[@ShivenBansal]

Thanks Griffpatch for the videos, I really like how you make me understand the blocks😎😎

[@tylerphillips4467]

I just started my intro into computer science class and we have 4 labs using scratch, although it's not going to delve deep into programming since its a intro class, I really enjoyed and appreciated how thorough you made this video in terms of explanation for someone like me who is just beginning. Thanks!

[@griffpatch]

My pleasure

[@bayarearob]

Hi Tyler, I teach CS for k-12 and wanted to know if you could share the grade you taking this CS class in? Also are you working out of CS first or something more advanced?

[@tylerphillips4467]

@@bayarearob I’m actually studying CS for the first time in college

[@bayarearob]

@@tylerphillips4467 awesome! Could share any of the curriculum or resources they use? I have a bunch of advanced 12th grade students that could benefit

[@josephmoore5708]

I made the player blink every once in a while by making a when green flag clicked, forever, if pick random 1 to 100 = 1 then, switch costume to Mid, wait 0.05 seconds, switch costume to closed, wait 0.1 seconds, switch costume to mid, wait 0.05 seconds, switch costume to open. Outside of the if loop, I put wait 0.05. Seconds. Also, if you make his eyes closer together it will make him look cartoonish and cute. If you make him look ALMOST cross eyed, it makes him look even better!

[@AwsomeOnYoutube]

what a useful tutorial! thanks for making this

[@mattsnows7971]

I'm late to watching these, but the inclusion of Coyote Jumping mechanics in SCRATCH is some serious quality I wasn't expecting to see, frickin' crazy job as always.

[@laulanana]

I love Griffpatch! And thank you for this nice tutorial!

[@STY_BEATZ]

Thank you! I'm making a game series called "METER!" This was a good help with the movement and physics.

[@Jaxsfam]

I love your scratch games!

[@avalaus6189]

The quality of your tutorials, the editing and all of that, exceeds that of most scratch tutorials on youtube. Keep up the good work griffpatch!

[@aynurny]

[@Axt4mn]

I will be honest, I'm a COMPLETE beginner at scratch in comparison to people like you and you defintley went into a LOT more detail about tiny little things that I would just leave if I were making a project by myself but it's definitley worth going through more to have a high quality game and a bettter result in the end. Thank you for this tutorial I will definitley look out for the part two and all the following parts after that!

[@Stunt7]

There are online :D

[@Skulta]

im exited about me making the map and colors!

[@noscopeviolin]

I know im 2 years late, but this guy helped me out so much during digital literacy.

[@DragonSaiyan2009]

I’m bout to use this for my own little platformer Thanks for the tutorial! Wouldn’t have found this out without you :)

[@ezriha]

Hows it going? Got a link?

[@ikaedwards4178]

Thank you so much for making this series. I really wanted to make my own platformer game and this helped me a lot. You're pretty much the teacher I want.

[@fnbn2102]

YES

[@ArethaN.A]

*YES*

[@localjedi7125]

YES

[@GoodGuy77901]

when i watched this video i was a starter on scratch also in 6th grade, i didnt understand this at all until i started making a lot of games on scratch and now after 1 year i was able to understand this, it was fun here and now im moving to lua

[@GoodGuy77901]

your also the one who motavite me to start making games