Studio: Prison Break

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1 Start: What We're Building
2 Introduction to Prison Break Game
3 Create a New Arcade Project
4 Create a Sprite
5 Move with the Buttons
6 Draw Your Maze
7 Set the Walls of Your Map
8 Camera Follow the Sprite
9 Add a Goal Tile
10 Win the Game
11 Set a Timer
12 Wrap up
13 Make Sense: What Worked, What Broke
14 Reflect
15 What You Covered

1 - Start: What We're Building ~4 mins

Illustration for Start: what we're building Today you are working in MakeCode Arcade. You will plan a maze escape, then build Prison Break step by step at your device: predict, build, run and fix.

You can already create sprites and move them. Today you add walls, a goal and a win condition, plus a short timer so the escape has pressure.

Before you run anything, think: what should happen when your player reaches the goal tile, and what should stop them walking through walls?

Teacher Notes

Keep this short. Devices on MakeCode Arcade, students logged in. Optional predict: before anyone runs code, ask what should happen at walls and at the goal. Do not list build steps here. Note that pairs will sketch the maze before heavy tilemap work. Move quickly into the project so time stays on the build.

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+5 XP

2 - Introduction to Prison Break Game ~2 mins

Welcome to the 'Prison Break' game creation lesson! In this lesson, you will learn how to create a fun and exciting maze game using MakeCode Arcade. You will create a character, design a maze for the character to navigate, and set a goal for the character to reach. You will also learn how to add a timer to make the game more challenging. Let's get started and have some fun!

Teacher Notes

Frame this as the overview only. Stress that planning the path and goal comes before polishing art. Ask what a maze needs (blocked paths, one clear goal, fair challenge). No code on the board yet.

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+10 XP

3 - Create a New Arcade Project ~2 mins

Go to the https://arcade.makecode.com website and create a new project.

Teacher Notes

Model creating a new Arcade project on the board. Check every pair has a fresh project named in the class style. Watch for students opening the wrong MakeCode product (not Arcade).

+10 XP

4 - Create a Sprite ~3 mins

First, switch the editor to JavaScript. This studio is written in text rather than blocks. At the top of the MakeCode Arcade editor there is a toggle that says Blocks | JavaScript. Click JavaScript and type the code below into the editor.

It is the same program either way. Flip back to Blocks whenever you like and you will see the code you typed as blocks, which is a good way to check you have it right. If a line will not go in, check the brackets and the capital letters, text is fussier than blocks.

Next create a sprite for your character that you will control and navigate through the maze.

Add the following code to your project and then design a character using the sprite editor.

let mySprite = sprites.create(img`
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 7 5 7 7 . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 . 7 7 . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
    `, SpriteKind.Player)

Teacher Notes

Model adding the player sprite and opening the sprite editor briefly. Key question: why does the player need a clear sprite kind? Common bug: empty or tiny sprite that is hard to see. Differentiation: let slower pairs use a simple built-in look and move on.

Blocks or text

These studio builds are given as text. If your class has only ever used blocks, do the first code step together on the board in the JavaScript view, then let them work.
Flipping to Blocks after each step is the quickest way for a pupil to see whether what they typed is what they meant, and it costs seconds.
Studios in this unit can be taken any time after Strand 1, so do not assume the class has met the JavaScript view in Lesson 41 yet.

+10 XP

5 - Move with the Buttons ~3 mins

Now let's control our player with the buttons.

Add the following new code:

let mySprite = sprites.create(img`
    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . 7 7 . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 . 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 7 7 7 . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . . 7 . . . . . . . . 
    . . . . . . 7 7 7 7 7 . . . . . 
    . . . . . 7 7 . . . 7 7 . . . . 
    `, SpriteKind.Player)
controller.moveSprite(mySprite)

Once you've added the new code, test that you can move your player sprite with the joystick or your keyboard arrow keys.

Teacher Notes

Model controller movement on the board. Ask what should happen when a direction button is held. Common bug: movement code not attached to the player sprite, or sprite kind mismatch. Have pairs run once so they feel free movement before walls exist.

+10 XP

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Copyright Notice
This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2025. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.

Teacher Class Feed

1 - Start: What We're Building ~4 mins

2 - Introduction to Prison Break Game ~2 mins

3 - Create a New Arcade Project ~2 mins

4 - Create a Sprite ~3 mins

Blocks or text

5 - Move with the Buttons ~3 mins

Unlock the full learning experience

XP