This activity is included in an 8-part, 1 hour series to learn Game Maker. Short, focused topics with guided practice will give you practical experience building useful logic for creating games.
Begin Game Maker 2
Learn Build Mode Camera & Block Controls
🟢 EASY
In this activity, you will explore the controls needed to navigate while building an Experience in Game Maker and the basics of terraforming with blocks by accessing them in the Library.
Once you know how to use the build mode camera and build with blocks, you'll be ready to place and manipulate objects in Activity 3.
Launch Game Maker
Open the Experience created in Activity 1 or start a new one.
Practice Some Build Mode Camera Controls
Controls:
Keys
Mouse
Zoom in/out
Press W /S
Move camera left/right
Press A /D
Move camera up/down
Press Q / E
Turn camera left/right
Turn camera up/down
Orbit around a point in front of you
-
Modifier: Sprint a camera control
Hold SHIFT + use other controls with keys
Hold SHIFT + use other controls with mouse
Find Blocks
Open the Library (press L) and add blocks to your quick access bar (above the Library):
Click the Blocks tab at the top of the library to filter options and only show blocks.
Drag and release a few blocks into slots in quick access bar. Close the library (press L) and click on any block in the quick access bar or use the corresponding number shown in each slot to select a block to use.
Undo/Redo if Needed as you practice the controls below
CTRL + Z to undo
CTRL + Y to redo
Use the Free Brush (default) to practice basic block building controls
Basic Controls
Place
Remove
Replace
Place Layer
(no modifiers)
Modifiers
Line or Rectangle Shape
(on any block surface)
Hold [basic control] + drag & release
Line of Blocks
(vertical)
Hold [basic control] + SHIFT + drag up & release
Rectangle of Blocks
(vertical)
Hold [basic control] + drag to base shape + SHIFT + drag up & release
Test Other Block Brushes & Adjust Size
Notice when placing or removing with other brushes, the center of the shape snaps to the surface (blocks may be placed underground).
Brushes other than the Free brush will only build a vertical column in the brush shape.
Diamond - easy to climb shape
Cube - man-made structures and blocky terrain
Sphere - natural terrain
Follow Up
Now that you know how to build with blocks, you can block out the 3D space for your Experience, create terrain details and paths to guide players.
Learn how to add objects into your world in Activity 3.
➕ Relevant Resources
There are a lot of new things to explore with blocks including how they're used to build 3D interactive space and how they are used to create the aesthetics of your game.
Blocks can be used to create terrains and buildings, and they can be set to have different physical and visual properties. This is a great resource to review block basics and learn about their properties.
Make a rough base map before you build to save time. VoxEdit is an excellent tool to create a mini version of your map first. Building with blocks is similar to building with voxels.
Once you’ve worked out how you'll use 3D space in your concept, begin the blockout. Focus first on shape with a few base colors. At this point, builders only add very large assets that shape the world.
Color variation and careful use of textures can make your blockout attractive, but not distracting from gameplay. Use these specific recommendations or come up with your own palette.
