Timing and easing
Learning paths through this topic
Swap two pieces and slide them back when the move makes no match
A wrong swap should show itself and undo itself, but if the board is changed first and fixed later, matches can flash up that were never real, and fast fingers can start a second swap in the middle. Here is a timeline that keeps the board and the picture honest.
Clear matched tiles only after they have landed, not while still falling
In a match puzzle the board is decided the instant tiles drop, but the picture needs time. Start the next clearing too early and pieces vanish in mid-air; too late and the game feels sleepy. Here is how to know the exact moment the picture has caught up with the board.
Shake a piece for a wrong move so it always ends exactly where it started
A shake built from random jitters can leave the piece a few pixels off for good, and a second wrong tap in the middle of the first makes it jump. Here is a shake that is the same every time, ends at rest, and blends smoothly when it is triggered again.
Build a shield that recharges after a pause and waits longer once it breaks
A shield that refills at once removes all danger, and one that refills during a fight is invincible. Here is a shield that waits after each hit, waits longer when broken, passes excess damage on to health, and recharges at a steady speed on any screen.
Make the respawn wait longer after repeated deaths and protect the arrival
A fixed respawn time is dull when you die once and a punishment loop when a spot kills you again and again. Here is a wait that grows with a streak of deaths and resets after calm, plus a protected arrival that ends at the right moment.
Close a half-open menu smoothly instead of snapping or restarting
Tap a button while a panel is still sliding open and it often jumps to fully open before closing, or takes the full time to close from a tiny gap. Here is a way to reverse at any moment so the motion stays continuous and takes only as long as needed.
Roll a score number up smoothly and make sure it ends on the true value
Counting numbers feel rewarding, but they crawl for huge gains, stall just short of the final digit, or restart awkwardly when more points arrive mid-count. Here is a counter that always finishes, handles new gains and stays readable.
Shake the screen harder for big hits and stack small ones without going wild
Screen shake is easy to overdo: explosions in a row shake the picture off the screen, the shake looks like a blur on fast monitors, and it fades at a different speed on every computer. Here is how to stack, cap and fade it so it reads the same everywhere.
Reload one shell at a time and let a shot interrupt it
A shotgun that loads shells one by one should let you fire when you need to, but the usual version either locks you out until the end, loses a shell you were halfway through inserting, or makes you wait through the intro again. Here is the timing that feels fair.
Let players skip a cutscene without missing doors it opens or items it gives
Jumping to the end of a scripted scene is easy; making sure the game ends up in the same state as if it had played out is not. Players get stuck behind doors that never opened. Here is how to separate what must happen from what is just decoration.
Slide for a set time, slow down along the way and stay low under a low ceiling
A slide that ends on a timer pops the hero upright into a low tunnel ceiling, and one that slows at the wrong rate covers a different distance each time. Here is a slide whose length is known in advance and whose ending waits for room to stand.
Slow the world for exactly three seconds while the player stays nimble
A slow-motion power-up goes wrong in two ways: it lasts far longer than promised because its own timer is slowed too, or it makes the player crawl along with the enemies. Here is how to count the time and who slows by how much.