Build a Retro Missile Command Game From Scratch

In this screencast tutorial, I’ll show you how to use Construct 2 to implement the mechanics of the classic game Missile Command, taking advantage of Construct 2′s event and behavior systems. No previous programming or game development experience is required — all you need is a copy of Construct 2 (which has a free edition).

Introduction

The game we’ll build here is a pretty basic version of Missile Command. You can play the finished demo here.

In case you’ve never played before, here’s what you need to know:

• The game is controlled with the mouse.
• Meteors are coming from the sky (top of the screen) and come crashing down on your defense towers and buildings.
• You can shoot rockets which explode, destroying the meteors and protecting your city.
• You can’t spam-shoot; there’s a cooldown period after each shot. You need to anticipate the trajectories of the meteors to destroy them.
• Your goal is to protect your buildings for as long as possible.

If you would like to download the final game source, you can get it in CAPX format in the source files.

And although I’m not a graphic artist, I’ve provided the textures and images used for this tutorial in the source files.

Unpack the files to your hard drive, and whenever in the tutorial you’re asked to import/open a texture/image, browse to the folder where you unpacked them.

Watch the Screencast

Timestamps for specific sections:

• First steps – 00:03:09
• The meteor as enemies – 00:15:09
• Towers shooting – 00:30:00
• Meteor collisions – 00:57:15
• Keeping score – 01:06:44
• Game Over and restart – 01:08:57

What Next?

So you’ve implemented the basic mechanics of Missile Command – great! Now take it further. Here are some ideas:

• Improve the graphics. You could go for an oldschool 8-bit look, a Geometry Wars-style neon look, or something totally different!
• Tweak the different values – for instance, altering the speed of the different objects in the game can affect the difficulty of the game for the player.
• Add other type of enemies coming from the sky, with different movement patterns than just a straight line.

I recommend you check out the official Construct 2 manual and the tutorials on Scirra.com for more help.

Thanks for watching this tutorial!