How to Create a Simple Mini-Game with Python – Beginner’s Guide

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Introduction

Ever wanted to create your own video game? Python makes it easy! In this tutorial, we’ll build a simple mini-game using Pygame, a beginner-friendly library for game development. By the end of this guide, you’ll have a working game and the skills to improve it!

What You’ll Learn:

  •  Setting up Python & Pygame
  • Writing game logic
  •  Creating animations & interactions
  • Running your first Python game

Let’s get started! 

Step 1: Install Python & Pygame

First, install Python if you haven’t already. Download it from python.org. Then, install Pygame using the following command:

 

pip install pygame

Step 2: Setting Up the Game Window 🖥️

Let’s create a simple game where a player controls a paddle to catch a falling ball.

 

 

Code to Set Up Game Window:

import pygame

# Initialize Pygame
pygame.init()

# Game Window Dimensions
WIDTH, HEIGHT = 600, 400
screen = pygame.display.set_mode((WIDTH, HEIGHT))
pygame.display.set_caption(“Catch the Ball Game“)

# Colors
WHITE = (255, 255, 255)
BLACK = (0, 0, 0)
BLUE = (0, 0, 255)

Step 3: Add Game Elements

Now, let’s add the player’s paddle and the falling ball.

 

 

# Paddle properties
paddle_width = 100
paddle_height = 10
paddle_x = WIDTH // 2 – paddle_width // 2
paddle_y = HEIGHT – 30
paddle_speed = 5

# Ball properties
ball_size = 20
ball_x = WIDTH // 2
ball_y = 0
ball_speed = 3

Step 4: Game Loop – Adding Movement

We need a game loop to handle user input and move the ball.

running = True
while running:
     pygame.time.delay (30) # Control game speed

    for event in pygame.event.get ():
   if event.type == pygame.QUIT:
          running = False

# Get key presses
keys = pygame.key.get_pressed()
if keys [pygame.K_LEFT] and paddle_x > 0:
paddle_x -= paddle_speed
if keys [pygame.K_RIGHT] and paddle_x < WIDTH – paddle_width:
paddle_x += paddle_speed

# Move the ball
ball_y += ball_speed

# Reset ball if missed
    if ball_y > HEIGHT:
    ball_y = 0
   ball_x = pygame.mouse.get_pos ()[0]    # Random position

# Draw everything
    screen.fill (BLACK)
   pygame.draw.rect (screen, BLUE, (paddle_x, paddle_y, paddle_width,         paddle_height))
  pygame.draw.ellipse (screen, WHITE, (ball_x, ball_y, ball_size, ball_size))

pygame.display.update()

pygame.quit()

Step 5: Add a Scoring System

Let’s add a score system when the player catches the ball!

# Score counter
score = 0
font = pygame.font.Font(None, 36)

# Collision detection
if ball_y + ball_size >= paddle_y and paddle_x < ball_x < paddle_x + paddle_width:
score += 1
ball_y = 0
ball_x = pygame.mouse.get_pos()[0]

# Display score
score_text = font.render(f”Score: {score}”, True, WHITE)
screen.blit (score_text, (10, 10))

Step 6: Running Your Game

Save your file as catch_the_ball.py and run it using:

 

 

python catch_the_ball.py

Step 7: Improve Your Game

Want to make your game more exciting? Try these improvements:

✔ Add sound effects using pygame.mixer

✔ Increase ball speed as the score goes up

✔ Display Game Over message when the player misses too many times

✔ Change colors & graphics for better visuals

Game development is all about experimenting and having fun!

Conclusion

Congrats! You’ve built a mini-game in Python from scratch. This is just the beginning—try modifying the code to make it your own.

What’s next? Learn more about:

  • Advanced Pygame features (animations, levels, AI)

  • Other beginner-friendly Python projects

 

Did you enjoy this tutorial? Share your thoughts in the comments below! 👇😊