Create a 2D Game with Python and the Arcade Library
Last Updated :
11 Jul, 2024
We have a task to create a 2D game with Python and the Arcade library. In this article, we will demonstrate how to create a 2D game using Python and the Arcade library.
What is Arcade Library?
The Arcade library in Python is a modern framework designed for creating 2D games and graphical applications. It provides a user-friendly and intuitive interface for handling game development tasks, including input handling, rendering, and sound. Arcade simplifies the game development process with its clean and straightforward API, making it suitable for both beginners and experienced developers.
Create a 2D Game with Python and the Arcade Library
Here, we will explain how to create a 2D game with Python and the Arcade library:
Create a Virtual Environment
First, create the virtual environment using the below commands
python -m venv env
.\env\Scripts\activate.ps1
Install Arcade Library
To create the 2D game with Python, the initial step involves installing the Arcade library. Use the following command for installation:
pip install arcade
Code Explanation
Here, the step-by-step explanation of 2D game with Python and the Arcade library in Python:
Step 1: Library Import and Constants
Below code defines constants for the dimensions of the game window, ball, paddles, and their respective speeds. It also imports the arcade library, which is used for creating the game.
Python3
import arcade
# Constants
SCREEN_WIDTH = 800
SCREEN_HEIGHT = 600
BALL_RADIUS = 10
PADDLE_WIDTH = 10
PADDLE_HEIGHT = 100
PADDLE_SPEED = 10
BALL_SPEED = 5
Step 2: PongGame Class Initialization
Here, in below code a class PongGame is defined, which inherits from arcade.Window. The __init__ method initializes various attributes representing the game state, such as player positions, ball position, scores, and game-related parameters.
Python3
class PongGame(arcade.Window):
def __init__(self):
super().__init__(SCREEN_WIDTH, SCREEN_HEIGHT, "Pong")
self.player1_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player2_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_x = SCREEN_WIDTH // 2
self.ball_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_dx = BALL_SPEED
self.ball_dy = BALL_SPEED
self.player1_score = 0
self.player2_score = 0
self.keys_pressed = set()
self.winning_score = 5
self.game_over_printed = False
Step 3: Drawing the Game
In below code on_draw method is called by the game engine to render the game. It uses arcade methods to draw text displaying scores, rectangles for paddles, and a filled circle for the ball.
Python3
def on_draw(self):
arcade.start_render()
arcade.draw_text(f"Player 1: {self.player1_score}",
10, SCREEN_HEIGHT - 30, arcade.color.WHITE, 20)
arcade.draw_text(f"Player 2: {self.player2_score}", SCREEN_WIDTH -
140, SCREEN_HEIGHT - 30, arcade.color.WHITE, 20)
arcade.draw_rectangle_filled(
PADDLE_WIDTH / 2, self.player1_y, PADDLE_WIDTH, PADDLE_HEIGHT, arcade.color.WHITE)
arcade.draw_rectangle_filled(SCREEN_WIDTH - PADDLE_WIDTH / 2,
self.player2_y, PADDLE_WIDTH, PADDLE_HEIGHT, arcade.color.WHITE)
arcade.draw_circle_filled(self.ball_x, self.ball_y,
BALL_RADIUS, arcade.color.WHITE)
Step 4: Game Logic Update
In below code update method is called by the game engine to update the game logic. It includes the movement of paddles, ball, collision detection with walls and paddles, scoring, and handling game-over conditions
Python3
def update(self, delta_time):
if self.player1_score >= self.winning_score or self.player2_score >= self.winning_score:
return # Stop updating the game if it's over
self.move_paddles()
self.ball_x += self.ball_dx
self.ball_y += self.ball_dy
# Collision detection with top and bottom walls
if self.ball_y <= BALL_RADIUS or self.ball_y >= SCREEN_HEIGHT - BALL_RADIUS:
self.ball_dy *= -1
# Collision detection with paddles
if (self.ball_x - BALL_RADIUS <= PADDLE_WIDTH and self.player1_y - PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2 <= self.ball_y <= self.player1_y + PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2) \
or (self.ball_x + BALL_RADIUS >= SCREEN_WIDTH - PADDLE_WIDTH and self.player2_y - PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2 <= self.ball_y <= self.player2_y + PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2):
self.ball_dx *= -1
# Scoring
if self.ball_x <= 0:
self.player2_score += 1
self.reset_ball()
elif self.ball_x >= SCREEN_WIDTH:
self.player1_score += 1
self.reset_ball()
if self.player1_score >= self.winning_score or self.player2_score >= self.winning_score:
self.game_over()
Step 5: Handling Ball Reset and Paddle Movement
In below code These methods, reset_ball and move_paddles, are responsible for resetting the ball's position and adjusting the paddle positions based on the keys pressed by the player.
Python3
def reset_ball(self):
self.ball_x = SCREEN_WIDTH // 2
self.ball_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_dx = BALL_SPEED
self.ball_dy = BALL_SPEED
def move_paddles(self):
if arcade.key.W in self.keys_pressed:
self.player1_y += PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.S in self.keys_pressed:
self.player1_y -= PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.UP in self.keys_pressed:
self.player2_y += PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.DOWN in self.keys_pressed:
self.player2_y -= PADDLE_SPEED
Step 6: Handling Game Over and Restart
In below code game_over method determines the winner, prints a game-over message, and sets a flag to prevent redundant printing. The restart_game method resets the game state for a new game, called when the player presses the 'R' key.
Python3
def game_over(self):
# Determine the winner based on scores
if self.player1_score > self.player2_score:
winner = "Player 1"
elif self.player2_score > self.player1_score:
winner = "Player 2"
else:
winner = "It's a tie"
# Print the winner
if not self.game_over_printed:
print(f"Game Over! {winner} wins!")
print("Press 'R' to restart the game.")
self.game_over_printed = True
def restart_game(self):
self.player1_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player2_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player1_score = 0
self.player2_score = 0
self.reset_ball()
self.game_over_printed = False
def on_key_press(self, key, modifiers):
self.keys_pressed.add(key)
if key == arcade.key.R: # Restart game when 'R' key is pressed
self.restart_game()
def on_key_release(self, key, modifiers):
self.keys_pressed.remove(key) if key in self.keys_pressed else None
Step 7 : Main Function and Execution
In below code The main function creates an instance of the PongGame class and starts the game using arcade.run() when the script is executed directly.
Python3
def main():
game = PongGame()
arcade.run()
if __name__ == "__main__":
main()
Complete Code
Python3
import arcade
# Constants
SCREEN_WIDTH = 800
SCREEN_HEIGHT = 600
BALL_RADIUS = 10
PADDLE_WIDTH = 10
PADDLE_HEIGHT = 100
PADDLE_SPEED = 10
BALL_SPEED = 5
class PongGame(arcade.Window):
def __init__(self):
super().__init__(SCREEN_WIDTH, SCREEN_HEIGHT, "Pong")
self.player1_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player2_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_x = SCREEN_WIDTH // 2
self.ball_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_dx = BALL_SPEED
self.ball_dy = BALL_SPEED
self.player1_score = 0
self.player2_score = 0
self.keys_pressed = set()
self.winning_score = 5
self.game_over_printed = False
def on_draw(self):
arcade.start_render()
arcade.draw_text(f"Player 1: {self.player1_score}", 10, SCREEN_HEIGHT - 30, arcade.color.WHITE, 20)
arcade.draw_text(f"Player 2: {self.player2_score}", SCREEN_WIDTH - 140, SCREEN_HEIGHT - 30, arcade.color.WHITE, 20)
arcade.draw_rectangle_filled(PADDLE_WIDTH / 2, self.player1_y, PADDLE_WIDTH, PADDLE_HEIGHT, arcade.color.WHITE)
arcade.draw_rectangle_filled(SCREEN_WIDTH - PADDLE_WIDTH / 2, self.player2_y, PADDLE_WIDTH, PADDLE_HEIGHT, arcade.color.WHITE)
arcade.draw_circle_filled(self.ball_x, self.ball_y, BALL_RADIUS, arcade.color.WHITE)
def update(self, delta_time):
if self.player1_score >= self.winning_score or self.player2_score >= self.winning_score:
return # Stop updating the game if it's over
self.move_paddles()
self.ball_x += self.ball_dx
self.ball_y += self.ball_dy
# Collision detection with top and bottom walls
if self.ball_y <= BALL_RADIUS or self.ball_y >= SCREEN_HEIGHT - BALL_RADIUS:
self.ball_dy *= -1
# Collision detection with paddles
if (self.ball_x - BALL_RADIUS <= PADDLE_WIDTH and self.player1_y - PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2 <= self.ball_y <= self.player1_y + PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2) \
or (self.ball_x + BALL_RADIUS >= SCREEN_WIDTH - PADDLE_WIDTH and self.player2_y - PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2 <= self.ball_y <= self.player2_y + PADDLE_HEIGHT / 2):
self.ball_dx *= -1
# Scoring
if self.ball_x <= 0:
self.player2_score += 1
self.reset_ball()
elif self.ball_x >= SCREEN_WIDTH:
self.player1_score += 1
self.reset_ball()
if self.player1_score >= self.winning_score or self.player2_score >= self.winning_score:
self.game_over()
def reset_ball(self):
self.ball_x = SCREEN_WIDTH // 2
self.ball_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.ball_dx = BALL_SPEED
self.ball_dy = BALL_SPEED
def move_paddles(self):
if arcade.key.W in self.keys_pressed:
self.player1_y += PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.S in self.keys_pressed:
self.player1_y -= PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.UP in self.keys_pressed:
self.player2_y += PADDLE_SPEED
if arcade.key.DOWN in self.keys_pressed:
self.player2_y -= PADDLE_SPEED
def game_over(self):
# Determine the winner based on scores
if self.player1_score > self.player2_score:
winner = "Player 1"
elif self.player2_score > self.player1_score:
winner = "Player 2"
else:
winner = "It's a tie"
# Print the winner
if not self.game_over_printed:
print(f"Game Over! {winner} wins!")
print("Press 'R' to restart the game.")
self.game_over_printed = True
def restart_game(self):
self.player1_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player2_y = SCREEN_HEIGHT // 2
self.player1_score = 0
self.player2_score = 0
self.reset_ball()
self.game_over_printed = False
def on_key_press(self, key, modifiers):
self.keys_pressed.add(key)
if key == arcade.key.R: # Restart game when 'R' key is pressed
self.restart_game()
def on_key_release(self, key, modifiers):
self.keys_pressed.remove(key) if key in self.keys_pressed else None
def main():
game = PongGame()
arcade.run()
if __name__ == "__main__":
main()
Output
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