How to Make Your First AI Game
A platform-agnostic workflow for going from one mechanic to a playable prototype.
Make a one-screen game with one input, one goal, one failure condition and a replay button; finishing a tiny loop teaches more than generating a huge unfinished concept.
Step 1: write the loop
Use one sentence: “The player drags a basket, catches stars for points, loses after three bombs, then taps Replay.” If you cannot state the loop that simply, reduce it.
Step 2: generate mechanics before style
Ask for placeholder shapes, input, collision, score, loss and restart. Play it ten times. Fix double-counting, impossible spawns and broken reset state before requesting art or sound.
Step 3: add feel
Add clear hit feedback, a short sound, readable UI and a small difficulty curve. Keep the session under one minute. Test with someone who has not read your prompt and watch without explaining.
Definition of finished
- A new player understands the action within five seconds.
- Every run can end and restart without reloading.
- Score and failure behave consistently.
- The game remains playable on the target device.
Use a five-pass build instead of one giant prompt
- Loop: Build only the primary action, feedback and end condition.
- States: Add start, active play, win or failure and replay.
- Balance: Set concrete timing, speed, score and difficulty values.
- Clarity: Add the minimum UI needed to understand the objective.
- Polish: Improve art, sound and effects without changing the rules.
Test after every pass. If a revision changes multiple systems, ask the tool to restore the last working behavior and isolate the requested change. This is faster than repeatedly regenerating the entire game.
“Make a fun space game with upgrades and lots of enemies.”
Better first promptCreate a 60-second one-screen game. Move a ship left and right with drag input. Meteors fall from the top; surviving adds one point per second. The player has three lives. Increase meteor speed by 10% every 15 seconds. End at zero lives or 60 seconds, show the score, and reset every object and counter on replay.
The better version does not describe the entire dream game. It defines a testable first milestone. Upgrades, bosses and progression can be added only after that milestone is stable.
Define “finished” before generating
For the first project, finished can mean: a stranger understands the control, completes or loses a run, sees the result and replays without a broken state. Write those acceptance criteria before opening the creator. They protect the project from endless additions.
When the loop works, publish the exact build and ask three people where they hesitated. Fix the most common problem, save a clean version and stop. A completed small game gives you a reusable process for the second project.
Features, pricing and terms can change quickly. Recheck the linked sources and current official terms before making a commercial or platform decision.