01
It happens 60 times a second.
Why: “Every tick” is true on every frame, about 60 times a second.
Fix: Use a trigger that happens once, like On collision, On clicked or On created. Or add System ▸ Trigger once while true.
SEE IT / DO IT YOURSELF
One click.
A change.
Find the layout, add two objects and make a click change a line of text. Work in Construct 3 in your browser.
About the screenshots
Real screenshots from the official documentation. The images show the providers' example projects; your project names and content will differ. Open the tool alongside this guide.
One step at a time. Keep the real tool open beside this guide.
Get Alinta’s templates in MittUiB Files ↗Then follow the template walkthrough → 12 mistakes everyone makes ↓ 12 clever tricks ↓ Stuck? Where to get help ↓
YOUR FIRST WORKING INTERACTION
Make a place answer back.
Build a small page in the real Construct editor: a sentence, a button and a response. Choose a place you know. The visitor presses the button and sees another possible version of that place.
Work with this guide beside Construct. Each step ends with something you can find or try in the editor.
Following Lab 3's campus map? Use the Mapping walkthrough instead. It teaches the same condition/action idea with a tap.
STEP 01
Open Construct and create a project.
Open the real Construct editor ↗
On the start page, choose New project. Enter a name you will remember and confirm the dialog. Keep the default settings for this exercise.
Check your screen: Layout 1 and Event sheet 1 are available. The large middle area is where you place objects.
STEP 02
Find the three places you need.
- 5 / Layout: place text, images and buttons here.
- 6 / Properties, on the left: edit the selected object's settings.
- 3 / Tabs, at the top: switch between Layout and Event sheet. The event sheet defines what happens.
Check your screen: Find Layout 1, switch to Event sheet 1, then return to Layout 1.
Two views of the same project: Layout is where you arrange what the visitor sees. Event sheet is where you say what should happen. Switching tabs does not create a new project.
The Project Bar lists your layouts, event sheets and object types. The Properties panel changes what you have selected. If its settings look wrong, click the object again.
STEP 03
Add a text object and a button.
- Double-click an empty space in Layout 1.
- Use Search at the top right of the dialog. Find Text, insert it and place it in the layout.
- Select the text object. In Properties, set Text to “A place I know”. Make its box wider if the text is cramped.
- Double-click another empty space. Find Button and insert it. Set the button's Text to “See a possible future”.
Check your screen: One Text object and one Button appear in your layout.
STEP 04
Make a click change the text.
- Open the Event sheet 1 tab.
- Select Add event, then Button → On clicked.
- On the same row, select Add action → Text → Set text.
- Enter a text string about your possible future, including quotation marks:
"Here, we share memories instead of money.". Confirm the dialog.
Check your screen: Your row connects Button / On clicked to Text / Set text.
Official Add condition / Add action instructions ↗.
Read the row as a sentence: when Button is clicked, Text changes its words. The left side is the condition, the right side is the action.
Choose Add action on the row you just created. Add event underneath starts another rule. If you picked the wrong option, double-click the condition or action to edit it.
Now change the result: double-click Set text and replace the sentence with your own. Preview and press the button. You should see the new sentence.
Notice what stayed the same: the button still triggers the rule. Only the action's text changed. You can use this pattern for a memory, a clue or a different point of view.
Choose who listens
STEP 05
Run, try and save.
- Select Preview. Allow the preview window if the browser asks.
- Click your project's button. Check that the text changes.
- Return to the editor. Choose Menu → Project → Save as → Download a copy. Keep the
.c3pproject file in a folder you can find again.
Check your screen: A click produces a visible change and your project is saved. Reopen the saved project to check you kept the right version.
Official saving instructions ↗. Downloads usually go to your Downloads folder unless your browser asks for a location.
Use a detail from your own life and imagine how it could change. This is a small interaction exercise; continue to follow the requirements of your current assignment.
More troubleshooting: find your symptom
CONSTRUCT / EVERYONE DOES THESE
12 mistakes everyone makes.
Not stupid, just human. Every Construct maker has hit all of these. Find your symptom, then read why and how to fix it.
First contact: four quick checks
- Tap does nothing: add the Touch object and use On tap object.
- Preview shows the wrong scene: use Preview layout for the map you are editing.
- An object is missing: place it inside the layout.
- Keep your work: download a .c3p copy. It is your editable project, not a playable web export.
02
My action does nothing at all.
Why: The object exists in the project, but there is no copy of it in the layout.
Fix: Drag the object from the Project Bar into the layout. Actions only affect objects that are actually there.
03
None of my events run.
Why: The layout is using a different event sheet.
Fix: Click empty space in the layout. In Properties, set Event sheet to the sheet you are editing.
04
My player falls through the floor.
Why: The floor has no Solid behaviour, so Platform movement ignores it.
Fix: Select the floor ▸ Behaviors ▸ Add ▸ Solid.
05
My sprite floats, sinks or gets stuck.
Why: The origin point or the collision polygon is in the wrong place.
Fix: Open the Animations editor. Put the origin at the feet and check the collision polygon hugs the character.
06
Every enemy explodes at once.
Why: Nothing picked which enemy, so the action hits all of them.
Fix: Put a condition before the action that picks one, like Enemy ▸ On collision with Bullet.
07
My score keeps resetting.
Why: It is set to 0 in an event that runs all the time, or it is an instance variable on one object.
Fix: Use a global variable for score and only reset it in On start of layout.
08
The score scrolls away with the level.
Why: The HUD is on a layer that moves with the camera.
Fix: Put the HUD on its own layer and set that layer’s Parallax to 0, 0.
09
Two events fight each other.
Why: Events run from top to bottom, every tick. A later event can undo an earlier one.
Fix: Read your sheet from the top, like the computer does. Move, merge or add a condition so only one wins.
10
Preview does not open.
Why: The browser blocked the preview window as a pop-up.
Fix: Allow pop-ups for editor.construct.net (look for the blocked-window icon in the address bar).
11
My project is gone.
Why: It only lived in the browser’s storage, which can be cleared.
Fix: Menu ▸ Project ▸ Save as ▸ Download a copy. Keep the .c3p file in your project folder, and save often.
12
My script says the object is undefined.
Why: JavaScript names are case-sensitive and must match the object name exactly.
Fix: runtime.objects.Text is not runtime.objects.text. Check the name in the Project Bar.
Not on the list? Screenshot your event sheet and send it to AI, or search with the image. See When you are unsure.
Later: try one extra technique
CONSTRUCT / LOOK LIKE A PRO
12 clever tricks.
Small moves that make a project feel finished. Most are one behaviour or one action. Try one per lab.
01
Sine
What it does: Make anything float, pulse or sway with zero events.
How: Add the Sine behaviour. Set Movement to Vertical for floating, or Size for pulsing.
02
Tween
What it does: Smooth moves, fades and growing, the secret of “juicy” games.
How: Action: Tween ▸ Tween (one property), for example opacity to 0 over 0.5 seconds.
03
Flash
What it does: Blink when hit: classic, readable feedback.
How: Add Flash, then in On collision use Flash ▸ Flash.
04
Fade
What it does: Messages that appear and disappear by themselves.
How: Add Fade to a text. Turn on Destroy so it cleans up after itself.
05
Scroll To
What it does: A camera that follows the player.
How: Add Scroll To to the player and make the layout bigger than the window.
06
Bullet + Destroy outside layout
What it does: Projectiles that fly and clean themselves up.
How: Add both behaviours to the projectile. Spawn it with Player ▸ Spawn another object.
07
System ▸ Wait
What it does: Timing without timers.
How: Set text “The bus is late…”, Wait 2 seconds, Set text “…again.” Actions after Wait run later.
08
Trigger once while true
What it does: Turn any ongoing condition into a one-time moment.
How: Add it as an extra condition: keys ≥ 3 + Trigger once opens the gate exactly once.
09
Groups and comments
What it does: An event sheet you can still read next week.
How: Right-click ▸ Add group. Name it (“Player”, “Doors”). Disable a group to test without deleting anything.
10
Functions
What it does: Write an action once, use it everywhere.
How: Add a function (“ShowMessage”) and call it from any event instead of copying the same actions.
11
Debug preview
What it does: See your variables change live while you play.
How: Choose the Debug option next to Preview. Click an object to inspect it while the game runs.
12
Local Storage
What it does: Remember progress between visits.
How: Add the Local Storage object. Save a value with Set item and read it back on start.
More: the Construct 3 manual ↗ explains every behaviour, and Construct’s tutorials ↗ show them in use.
WHEN YOU ARE UNSURE
Stuck? Show it, search it, ask someone.
Being stuck is part of making. Try one of these routes, and write down which one helped.
01 / SHOW THE AI
Send AI a screenshot
- Capture only the part that matters, for example your Construct event sheet or the error in VS Code. Windows: Win + Shift + S. Mac: Cmd + Shift + 4, then drag over the area.
- Paste it into the AI chat with Ctrl + V (Mac: Cmd + V), or drag the image file in. Copilot Chat in VS Code and most chat assistants accept images.
- Say what you expected and what happened.
“This is my Construct 3 event sheet. When I click the button, the text should change, but nothing happens. What should I check? Explain why, do not just fix it.”
Crop out your name, email, student number and other open tabs before you send it.
02 / SEARCH WITH THE IMAGE
No AI? Search with your screenshot
- Open Google Lens ↗ and upload your screenshot. In Chrome you can also right-click any image and choose Search image with Google.
- It finds pages, forum threads and videos that show the same screen, menu or error message.
- For an error, copy the exact message and search it in quotes:
"Cannot read properties of null".
No chatbot needed: you get real pages from real people who had the same problem.
03 / ASK THE COMMUNITY
Ask people who use Construct every day
- Construct’s own forum ↗Official community, with Construct staff and experienced users.
- r/construct on Reddit ↗Quick answers, shared projects and ideas.
Search first: your question has often been answered. When you post, include your Construct version, a screenshot of the event sheet and what you have already tried.
04 / WATCH SOMEONE DO IT
Learn from a tutorial
- Construct 3 tutorials on YouTube ↗Watch the clicks happen, then pause and try it yourself.
- Construct’s official tutorials ↗Written step by step, many made by the community.
- The Construct 3 manual ↗What every behaviour, event and action does.
Check the date and version. Construct 2 videos look similar, but the menus are different. Choose Construct 3 and recent.
05 / ASK A PERSON
Ask your lab assistant or a classmate
Say: “Can we look at this together?” Show what you expected, what happened and what you tried. Explaining the problem out loud often solves half of it.
Whatever helped, a forum post, a video, an image search or an AI answer, note it in your process log.
Continue with JavaScript.
Write and test your code in VS Code, then use it in Construct.
Continue: build a second response →