◀ 10.1a10.1b10.1c ▶

10.1b — 2-Button Jam: Build Day 1

Build Day 1 rule: end the day with the core loop — BOTH verbs working, something to act on, a lose state. Ugly is fine; non-playable is not. A jam that leaves Day 1 without its loop spends Day 3 building the loop instead of the game.

Build Day ~50 min

Build order (the loop skeleton):

  1. Read both inputs — one line each, GetKeyDown. Print to console on press. Nothing else works until this does:
if (Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.LeftArrow)) Debug.Log("A");
if (Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.RightArrow)) Debug.Log("B");
  1. Verb 1 with a placeholder — say DUCK: scale the player sprite to 0.5 height. One line of code, instantly testable, already FUN to spam.
  2. Verb 2 with a placeholder — DASH: a 0.15s Translate burst in facing direction. Your 3.3 cooldown pattern IS the dash (it is a fire rate on a movement).
  3. Something to act on — one obstacle, one pickup, one enemy. ANY one. Borrow the starter's spike or coin prefab wholesale.
  4. One lose state — the death loop you have written twice (2.2); here it can just be "restart the scene."

Checkpoint ritual (last 10 minutes): pass the keyboard around the team — each member plays the loop for 30 seconds. Anyone who cannot play it cannot build on it.

Close of Day ~5 min

Socratic: Core Loop First

  1. You built both verbs as placeholders before building anything else. What did the placeholder let you find out today that finished art and tuned numbers would have hidden?
  2. The rule was make it run ugly first. Which of your ugly things is genuinely unfinished, and which one is a design problem wearing ugly clothes?
  3. Your loop is playable but every number in it is a guess. Which single number do you tune first tomorrow, and what will you watch to decide it?

Checkpoint — before moving on, you must be able to:

  • Play your own loop: both verbs, one obstacle, one lose state
  • Explain the build order and why inputs print before mechanics
  • Name your riskiest task for Day 2

Reference Docs

Need a deeper explanation? These pages cover the same concepts:

Next: 10.1c — 2-Button Jam: Build Day 2

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