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I love games that let you move with speed,[br]fluidity, and finesse.

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I'm talking about games with perfect parkour,[br]comic book web-swinging, awesome skateboarding,

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super sonic speeds, and ninja-like wall-running.

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The problem is: there's no one-size-fits-all[br]answer for how to make such a movement system.

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What makes Rocket League great is completely[br]different to Sunset Overdrive, which is different

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still to Titanfall 2.

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Sure, we can get point to obvious stuff like[br]responsive controls, visual effects, and cool animations.

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But perhaps we can go further.

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What we can do is look at the very different[br]ways that movement works in a bunch of brilliant

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games, and then see if there's anything these[br]varying approaches all have in common, and

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help answer the question of how to make movement[br]fun.

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So, Hi.

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I'm Mark Brown, and this is Game Maker's Toolkit.

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Okay, let's start with Super Mario Odyssey.

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This game is all about giving the player a[br]bunch of different moves - that all allow

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for slightly different actions.

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You've got tall jumps and long jumps and fast[br]jumps and last-minute-save jumps.

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It's about knowing which move to use, and[br]when.

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But what's even better is that these moves[br]can be chained together to eke out further

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advantages.

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Mario's jump, dive, and hat throw can be carefully[br]chained together to bound between rooftops

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in New Donk City.

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We see similar stuff in other 3D platformers[br]like Sackboy: A Big Adventure and A Hat in Time.

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But also the Tony Hawk's series, which is[br]laser focused on combining moves.

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There are two actions - the revert and the[br]manual - which are specifically designed to

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keep your combo going between the skatepark[br]pieces.

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Next up is Insomniac's open-world zombie blaster[br]Sunset Overdrive.

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Now here, the main character doesn't have[br]a particularly involved moveset: just a basic

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run, jump, and roll.

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But that's because this game is all about[br]using things in the environment: running on

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walls, bouncing on awnings, grinding on rails,[br]and swinging on poles.

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Clever use of the environment will put you[br]at a huge advantage over the enemies.

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Other games that put the focus on environmental[br]interaction include sci-fi ninja sim Ghostrunner,

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and the best bits of the Ori games as you[br]bash to propel yourself off enemies and projectiles.

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Next, let's look quickly at The Pathless.

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And this one is all about timing.

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In this game you can temporarily boost your[br]speed by shooting arrows at floating targets

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in the world.

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You have to charge the shot and release when[br]the meter fills up completely - giving the

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game a sort of rhythmic action as you try[br]to efficiently time the release of every shot.

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And that's not to mention that if you release[br]when the meter is only halfway full, you get

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a much bigger burst of speed.

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But, if you screw up the timing, the shot[br]will miss and you get nothing.

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Moving on to Titanfall 2.

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And this game is all about momentum: building[br]it, and keeping it.

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The pilot can run at a max speed of only 22[br]kilometres per hour.

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However, your speed can be temporarily boosted[br]by things like wall-running, leaping away

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from walls, and sliding along the ground.

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So to be truly fast, you've got to try and[br]keep that momentum up, by endlessly chaining

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together those moves.

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But that's not all.

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When we go into multiplayer, we can get things[br]like the grapple which hooks onto a wall and

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then retracts - like Link's hookshot on fast[br]forward.

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Combine that with a jump and you can slingshot[br]your way across the map at super speed.

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And we're still not done.

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Because when you come to land you can do a[br]slide-hop (which is where you hit crouch,

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then jump) to maintain that momentum.

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The very best Titanfall 2 players - i.e. not[br]me - are the ones who are always thinking

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about ways to keep the momentum they've built[br]up.

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We see similar stuff in older shooters like[br]Quake and Counter-Strike, where bunnyhopping

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to build momentum was a physics-busting emergent[br]strategy not intended by the developers.

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The parkour gem Mirror's Edge will force you[br]to maintain momentum if you want to nail its

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time trials.

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Crumble is all about getting faster and faster,[br]the more you move.

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And in the platformer N++, you need to build[br]momentum in order to make the biggest jumps.

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Next up is Cyberhook - a first-person speedrunner[br]about grappling onto blocks and launching

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yourself towards the goal.

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And so this one, I think, is about understanding[br]trajectories.

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Bear with me for a second.

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A trajectory is a path an object will follow,[br]when moving under the influence of a physical force.

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And we subconsciously consider this when playing[br]any platformer, because the arc of every jump

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is determined by gravity.

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But in games with grappling hooks - like A[br]Story About My Uncle and Bionic Commando - the

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swing's arc is determined by both gravity[br]and the taut pull of the rope.

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And so to get the most out of the mechanic[br]we have to mentally map out the precise arc

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of the swing - and know the best time to latch[br]on and let go.

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We also see this in games with gliding mechanics,[br]it's all about the shapes the character

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will make when moving, and understanding[br]how to use that to your advantage.

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And finally, I want to touch on Rocket League.

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This game is kind of unique because the character[br]- in this case, a car - is basically a physics

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object, and you just apply forces in different[br]directions.

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This allows you to move the car about in pretty[br]much whatever way you desire: leading to masterful

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players discovering absurd tricks like making[br]a car fly across the pitch, or doing bonkers

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bicycle kicks.

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Trust me, this one is way over my head - but[br]I thought it was still worth mentioning.

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So, here, I've identified six different elements[br]that great games use to make movement more fun.

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Those are chaining moves, using the environment,[br]nailing timing windows, building momentum,

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understanding trajectories, and playing with[br]physics.

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Now that's not an exhaustive list - and it's[br]also important to note that many games mix

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and match these different elements.

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In Just Cause 3, for example, you need to[br]hook shot onto the environment, which builds

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momentum as the rope retracts.

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You can then chain into your parachute and[br]then chain into your wingsuit.

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At which point you're carefully considering[br]the weirdo trajectory of this thing as you

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dive away from enemy attacks.

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So this gives us a sort of table of elements[br]when it comes to movement.

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The building blocks that are used and combined[br]to make interesting interactions.

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These are the things that make movement fun.

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But… why?

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Is there anything these different approaches[br]to movement have in common, to help explain

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their appeal?

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First, all of these approaches allow for a[br]real freedom of movement.

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They're about giving you options for how to[br]get around the world: you could take a very

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slow and meandering trip up a staircase, or[br]you could run up the wall, turn around, spring

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off the wall, and tuck your feet up over the[br]handrail.

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This effectively turns the entire game space[br]into a traversal playground.

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Walls and big gaps are no longer barriers[br]to impede progress: they are challenges to

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overcome.

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And where many games are practically glued[br]to the ground, these advanced movement mechanics

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add verticality to the world.

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Second, these movement mechanics typically[br]allow for very analogue inputs.

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Which... let me explain what I mean.

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When using the hookshot in Zelda, you must[br]aim it a suitable point, and then it locks

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Link into an unstoppable animation until he[br]reaches his destination.

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It follows a single, predetermined path.

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In Titanfall 2, however, the grapple works[br]in a very different way.

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You can latch onto any point in the world,[br]you can move while it retracts in order to

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change its trajectory, you can boost the speed[br]with a jump, and you can cancel the grapple

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at any point.

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There is an almost infinite number of paths[br]it can follow - entirely based on your control

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and desire.

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And we see this in other mechanics too: like[br]generous mid-air movement in Mario, being

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able to bash in literally any direction in[br]Ori, and the absurdly granular input you have

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in physics-based movement systems like Rocket[br]League.

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These either give you perfect fine-grain control[br]of the character, or at least the ability

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to influence a trajectory.

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Third… when done well, these mechanics allow[br]you to move with flow, which is when you fluidly

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move through a level without stopping or slowing[br]down too much.

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So perhaps that's chaining together moves[br]across an entire level, or keeping your momentum

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with careful navigation of the space.

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This can be particularly fun in games with[br]environmental interactions as you bounce from

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one object to another - but that's as much[br]to do with the level design as it is the basic

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movement mechanics.

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Fourth - and perhaps most importantly - these[br]advanced movement mechanics are a test of skill.

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When chaining moves, you need to know how[br]and when to link these actions together - and

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probably in mid-air or when moving at speed.

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When it comes to using the environment, there's[br]a certain level of precision needed to guide

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your character onto a rail or bounce pad.

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And timing, naturally, tests your timing.

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Momentum has a built-in skill check: the faster[br]you move, the harder the game is to control.

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Trajectories can be particularly hard to understand[br]until you internalise their unique arcs.

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And physics-based characters are naturally[br]challenging to navigate.

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And so while these advanced moves offer huge[br]advantages over the more basic running and

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jumping - such as making you move faster,[br]take shortcuts, or get the drop on enemies

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in combat - they come with a huge skill barrier,[br]and until you can surpass it, you’re gonna

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spend a lot of time scraping your face against[br]the tarmac.

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But, that leads to the fifth and final similarity.

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Which is when you do have that skill, all[br]of these movement mechanics are intrinsically

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satisfying to use.

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When chaining moves you're performing tiny,[br]quick-fire piano melodies on the controller

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which just feels amazing on the fingers.

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When you're exploiting the environment you're[br]constantly making plans about your route forward.

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And hitting a button in a microscopic timing[br]window and getting a big burst of feedback

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is always a hit.

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Building momentum lets you get almost uncontrollably[br]fast, putting you in thrilling white-knuckle

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situations as you try not to slam into a wall.

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And expertly navigating a character while[br]navigating gravity and other physics-based

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interactions just feels great.

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Skimming close to the ground with Just Cause's[br]wingsuit is an unparalleled treat.

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It would be easy to say that movement in a[br]game feels good because you're playing as

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a character with awesome abilities - but I[br]think it's the player's physical performance

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of these skills that feels satisfying - and[br]not just the super heroic imagery on screen.

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Though, let me give a couple caveats.

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One is that games should look for precision[br]- but not perfection.

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So it's good to have systems that subtly help[br]the player out.

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I've talked before about coyote time - which[br]is letting the player jump off a platform,

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even if they've already run off the edge.

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We can do something similar on the landing,[br]by pushing the player to safety if they were

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just a few centimetres away from the ledge.

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You might also give the player moves to save[br]themselves from a bad jump: like being able

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to right your board back in line with the[br]ground in Tony Hawk's, or slow time and dash

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in Ghostrunner - which can be used to realign[br]for a wall run.

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And in King of Cards, if you get hit in mid-air[br]you'll get a free shoulder bash move which

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can be used for a last minute, frantic scramble[br]to safety.

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And secondly, this brings us back to something[br]I explored in a video late last year.

0:11:42.470,0:11:47.300
The idea of whether the player should be given[br]a power fantasy through slick animation and

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highly automated systems.

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Or have to earn the power fantasy through[br]the application of hard-won skills.

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Ultimately we want something that can do both:[br]easy to use, but hard to master.

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So please check out that video for more information[br]- and ideas for how to make these movement

0:12:04.080,0:12:08.329
systems more accessible to a wider audience.

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So how do we make interesting movement systems[br]in games?

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If you ask me, we're looking for mechanics[br]that give players a real freedom of movement,

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through analogue inputs that let them fully[br]control how their character moves.

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We want to test - or at least reward - the[br]player's skill, and create movement that feels

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satisfying when you perform it well - whether[br]that's through quickfire finger action on

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the controller, or stomach-clenching, near-miss[br]thrill rides.

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I've established a number of elements that[br]work towards these goals - from chaining together

0:12:40.709,0:12:46.110
a big load of actions to toying with the trajectory[br]of a wingsuit under gravity - but there are

0:12:46.110,0:12:49.150
probably more to discover, and more I missed.

0:12:49.150,0:12:53.639
So, in the comments below - what's your favourite[br]movement system in a game?

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And - most crucially of all - why?

0:12:58.389,0:13:04.089
It's indie game recommendation time, and I've[br]been having a lot of fun with Cyber Shadow

0:13:04.089,0:13:11.160
- an NES throwback platformer that's inspired[br]by games like Ninja Gaiden and Shatterhand.

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It's not quite as punishing as those old games[br]but it will certainly give you a good challenge.

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If you're up for it you can expect great level[br]design, a huge moveset, and stellar boss fights.

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Cyber Shadow is out now on all major platforms.