What you will build
- A game loop that updates and redraws every frame
- Keyboard or mouse controls that respond to the player
- Collision detection and a scoring system
- A start screen, a game-over screen, and a way to restart
The path, stage by stage
Work through these free courses in order. Each stage links to the full course details, its platform, and what you walk away able to do.
| Stage | Course | Platform | Hours | What you gain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Learn JavaScript through animation | Intro to JavaScript: Drawing & Animation | Khan Academy | 10 | Khan Academy teaches JavaScript through drawing and animation, which is the perfect on-ramp for games. You learn variables, loops, and functions while making things move on a canvas, so game logic feels natural from the start. |
| 2. Get solid with JavaScript | Learn JavaScript for Free | Scrimba | 30 | Scrimba's interactive course firms up the fundamentals a game needs: keyboard input, state, collision checks, and a game loop. You finish able to structure a real game rather than a single animation. |
Why these courses, not the alternatives
Khan Academy is our unusual but deliberate first pick because it teaches JavaScript through animation on a canvas, and canvas drawing is exactly how browser games are built, so you learn the language and the medium at once. Then Scrimba's interactive course firms up input handling and state, the parts a game needs that a drawing course glosses over. We skip heavy game engines on purpose: for a first game, plain JavaScript and the canvas API teach you more about how games actually work than dragging nodes in an engine. Ship a small game, then reach for a framework.
Before you start
None. This is a beginner path and a genuinely fun place to start coding.
What you walk away with
A playable browser game built with JavaScript that anyone can open in a tab.
Start with the first course
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a game engine to build a game?
No. A browser game can be built with plain JavaScript and the HTML canvas, which is what this path teaches. Engines like Phaser or Unity are worth learning later for bigger projects.
What is a good first game to build?
Snake, Pong, Flappy Bird, or a simple platformer. They each have a game loop, controls, and collisions without being huge, which makes them ideal first builds.
Is JavaScript good for making games?
For browser games, yes. It runs everywhere with no install, and the canvas API is built for exactly this. That is why this path is JavaScript.
How long until I have a playable game?
You can have a very simple game working within the first stage. The 40 hours cover learning enough JavaScript to build something you are proud to share.
Keep going on FreeCodingCourses
Where this build leads