If the idea of ​​creating your own games has ever crossed your mind, then Game Builder Garage is the game for you. First introduced with Nintendo Labo, Game Builder Garage teaches players the ins and outs of basic visual programming and design through exercises and tutorials from the minds of Nintendo. If you thought building your own levels in Super Mario Maker 2 was complex, you ain’t seen nothing yet. It’s sure to be a hit with young Switch gamers and budding game designers.

While programming your games may seem like a gargantuan task, with these tips and tricks you’ll be building complex runners and shooters in no time. Here are some tips and tricks for Game Builder Garage.

Game Builder Garage offers seven comprehensive tutorials, each taking you through the basics of programming to more advanced 3D jobs. Walking before running is always recommended, but in Game Builder Garage it is a necessity. You have to play the first level of the tutorial, which takes about 40 minutes. At this point, you’re free to try the free programming, which lets you create just about anything your mind can think of.

The tutorials are surprisingly long, but they’re essential to getting the most out of Game Builder Garage. It’s okay to experiment by trial and error, but it might be easier to build a game from the basics learned in the lessons.

Game Builder Garage tips and tricks Extend your games with the Swap-Game Nodon

Game Builder Garage is a powerful game design tool, but it also has its limitations. You can only create a game with up to 512 Nodons, but there is a way to extend this to multiple games. Using the Nodon Swap-Game, you can link games together using matching keywords. This also works with downloaded games, although the person downloading will need to download all parts. Using this you can create races with multiple tracks, for example. It’s a good way to make longer games.

Game Builder Garage tips and tricks Know your Nodons

Nodons are the cute and colorful pieces that work in the backgrounds of your games. They are sorted into four categories: Input, Middle, Output and Objects. In short, objects are the logic behind the game. There are over 80 nodes in the game, each controlling specific aspects and actions that must be combined. If you’re looking to do something in your game, chances are there’s a Nodon for it.

Game Builder Garage tips and tricks Try Rubber Dodge

Even with the tutorials, programming – even without a line of code – can be tricky and sometimes frustrating. The best thing to do is to try to speak logic out loud. In software engineering, this is sometimes called rubber duck dodging or rubber ducky debugging. By forcing yourself to explain the code, line by line, you can sometimes find the mistake you made or realize the logic that is missing from your game. The same reasoning applies here.

Game Builder Garage tips and tricks Use a computer mouse

When docked, Game Builder Garage can play with the Joy-Cons or Pro Controller, and in handheld mode, players can use touch controls. But wouldn’t you prefer the precision of touch controls when programming on your screen? Well, if you have a mouse nearby, you can! Plug a mouse into the USB port and program as if you were on a PC.

Game Builder Garage tips and tricks Downloads are not downloaded forever

In Game Builder Garage, you can download any game you create online, as long as it’s not inappropriate. But be careful, your creations have an expiration date. If no one uploads your download for more than a year, it will be deleted from the online server. Of course, you can download it again if you still have it locally, but don’t expect your downloads to be listed forever.