How to make an 8-bit Space Shooter game — retro game maker
Blast waves of alien bots, grab the double-shot power-up and beat the mothership — an 8-bit arcade shooter you can change. Play it first, then open it in the Retro 8-bit Studio and change it until it is your own game.
🎮 Controls: ← → move · Z or X shoot · press Z on the title screen to start
The numbers that make the game
At the top of the 8-bit (TIC-80) code are the settings — change one, run the game, and feel the difference.
This is how game designers balance a game.
var SPEED = 2
How fast your rocket moves
var FIRE_DELAY = 12
Frames between shots (smaller = faster shooting)
var ALIEN_SPEED = 0.5
How fast the alien bots march
var SWOOP = 90
Frames between alien dives (smaller = more dives)
var WAVES = 3
Waves of alien bots before the mothership
var BOSS_HP = 30
Hits the mothership can take
var LIVES = 3
Tries before GAME OVER
var SPACE = 0
The space colour (0 to 15)
var SOUND = true
False = a quiet game (F4 changes the sounds)
var MUSIC = true
False = no title tune (F5 changes the music)
7 ways to change the space shooter game
Try them in order. The studio ticks each one off when your change works.
F1 Code: a faster rocket — change var SPEED = 2 to 3, then Ctrl+R to play.
F1 Code: rapid fire — var FIRE_DELAY = 12 → 5.
F1 Code: a longer battle — var WAVES = 3 → 5 (or 1 to meet the mothership fast).
F1 Code: a new sky — var SPACE = 0 → 1 for purple space (any colour 0 to 15).
F1 Code: your own title — change "SPACE SHOOTER" to your game's name (CAPITALS look best).
F2 Sprites: paint your own rocket (sprite 256).
F4 Sounds: make your own laser sound — pick sound 4, draw new volume or pitch bars.
How it works on TalentJR
Play the gameFind out what feels too easy or too hard — that is what you will change.
Open it in the studioRetro 8-bit Studio runs a real 8-bit computer (TIC-80): F1 code, F2 sprites, F3 map, F4 sounds.
Change one thing at a timeA number first, then a new rule, then your own art and title.
Save and shareSign in to keep your game, then share a talentjr.in/play/… link on WhatsApp — friends can play it and make their own version.
