Every feature

Everything in NutHouse, from the real menus.

This page is generated from NutHouse’s own lists, so it is always exactly what the app offers. Each item shows which mode it first appears in. For how to use each one, see the help centre.

SimpleAdvancedExpertOne-off trigger (happens once, when it happens)

Kinds of object

Every game is made of these. Sprites do the moving; the rest keep score, show words or make things happen.

simple

Sprite

A character or thing that moves and animates: a player, enemy or ball.

simple

Block

A coloured block: walls, floors and sky.

advanced

123

Counter

Shows a number you can add to or take away from.

simple

★ 0

Score

Shows the player's score.

simple

Lives

Shows how many lives are left.

simple

Text

Words on the screen, like "Game Over".

simple

0:59

Timer display

A clock on the screen. Count down to zero for a race against time.

advanced

▮▮▮▯

Health bar

A bar that shows how much health or energy is left.

simple

[ Go ]

Button

Something to click, like "Start" or "Play again".

advanced

Ab|

Text box

A box the player types into, like their name or a quiz answer.

simple

Question

A quiz question with answers to click. One is right!

simple

1st

High scores

A table of the best scores. It remembers them on this computer.

simple

Spawner

Invisible. Makes a new copy of a sprite every few seconds, right where it is.

Object library

Ready-made sprites and tiles drawn in NutHouse’s pixel style, with animations where it makes sense. Search for “enemy”, “space” or “jump”, or browse by category. Add one, then change it in the sprite editor.

Search

Type what you want: “enemy”, “flying”, “door”. Every object has tags, so “collect” finds coins, stars, gems and keys.

My library

Press ⭐ on any sprite or background to keep it. It stays on your Mac and shows up in every game from then on.

From another game…

Open any .nuthouse file and pick objects out of it, or save a whole game’s objects to My library in one go.

Characters · 7

HeroA little hero who walks and jumps (platform movement).

ExplorerA second hero with pink hair who walks and jumps (platform movement).

Hero (top-down)The hero for maze games: walks in 4 directions with the arrow keys.

KnightA brave knight in shiny armour (walks and jumps).

WizardA wizard with a starry hat (walks and jumps).

RobotA friendly robot. Moves with the arrow keys.

AstronautAn astronaut who floats around with the arrow keys.

Animals · 4

CatA curious cat (walks and jumps).

FrogA hoppy frog that patrols back and forth.

FishA goldfish that swims left and right.

BeeA buzzing bee that chases whoever comes close.

Enemies · 10

SlimeA wobbly enemy that patrols back and forth.

BatA flapping bat that chases the nearest player when it gets close.

GhostA spooky ghost. Set who it chases in its movement settings.

SpikesSharp spikes. Use “collides with” to make them hurt.

ZombieA slow zombie that shuffles back and forth.

SkeletonA rattly skeleton that patrols.

SpiderA creepy spider that chases you when you get close.

SnakeA wiggly snake that slithers back and forth.

DroneA buzzing robot drone that follows you around.

LavaBubbling lava. Use “collides with” to make it hurt.

Collectables · 6

CoinA spinning coin to collect.

StarA shiny star.

HeartAn extra life?

FlagReach the flag to finish a level.

GemA sparkly blue gem.

CrystalA glowing pink crystal.

Items · 5

Treasure ChestA chest with “stopped” (shut) and “open” animations.

PotionA pink potion. Give a health boost when it's picked up!

SwordA shiny sword.

ShieldA knight's shield.

BombA bomb with a fizzing fuse.

Balls & Paddles · 2

PaddleA bat that slides left and right with the arrow keys.

BallA ball that flies in straight lines. Add a Bounce action to make it bounce!

Bricks & Blocks · 4

BrickA red brick to smash.

Blue BrickA blue brick to smash.

Green BrickA green brick to smash.

Yellow BrickA yellow brick to smash.

Space · 8

SpaceshipThe player's ship: slides left and right, and shoots lasers.

Blob AlienA wiggly one-eyed alien.

Flying SaucerA saucer with blinking lights.

LaserA laser shot that flies straight up. Use it with the “Shoot” action.

ExplosionA burst that plays once. Destroy it when its animation has finished.

RocketA rocket that moves with the arrow keys.

AsteroidA space rock drifting in a random direction.

SatelliteA satellite with solar panels.

Vehicles · 1

Racing CarA car seen from above. ↑ to go, ← → to steer.

Flyer · 2

BirdA little bird that falls with gravity. Make it jump to flap!

PipesTwo pipes with a gap to fly through. They slide to the left.

Maze · 3

KeyPick it up to open a door.

DoorA door with “closed” and “open” animations. Change its animation to open it.

TorchA flickering wall torch.

Scenery · 5

TreeA leafy tree.

BushA round green bush.

RockA grey rock.

SignA wooden signpost.

MushroomA spotty red mushroom.

Tiles · 14

IceA shiny block of ice. Solid.

SandSandy ground. Solid.

Snowy GroundEarth with snow on top. Solid.

CrateA wooden crate. Solid.

LadderPlatform characters climb it with ↑ and ↓, and can stand on top.

BridgeA plank bridge you can jump up through and stand on.

GrassSolid ground. Things with Platform movement can stand on it.

Stone WallA solid wall nothing can walk through.

Wooden LedgeA ledge you can jump up through and land on.

CloudA fluffy cloud you can jump up through and stand on.

Brick WallRed bricks. Solid.

Dungeon FloorStone slabs. Solid, good for maze walls.

Metal PlateA riveted steel plate. Solid.

WaterSplashy water. Just decoration, things pass through.

Backgrounds · 10

Level-sized scenes painted in code. Stretch them, tile them, or set them to repeat along for scrolling levels.

Movements

Pick one per sprite. Every movement has its own settings, like speed, jump strength and which keys to use.

simple

Stays still

Doesn't move by itself.

simple

Arrow keys (8 directions)

The player moves it with the arrow keys.

simple

Platform (walk and jump)

Walks left and right, falls, and jumps onto backgrounds.

simple

Bouncing ball

Flies in a straight line. Use a Bounce action to bounce it.

simple

Patrols back and forth

Walks left and right by itself, turning round at walls.

simple

Chases another object

Heads towards the nearest copy of another object.

advanced

Racing car (seen from above)

Left and right steer, up goes, down brakes.

advanced

First-person (3D levels)

See through its eyes in a 3D level: ↑↓ walk, ←→ turn.

advanced

Follows a path

Moves along points you set.

advanced

Follows the mouse

Sticks to the mouse pointer.

Any sprite can also tick Falls with gravity, and each level can pull gravity down, up or off. Every library sprite comes with a sensible movement already picked, and a banner explains what it does.

3D levels

Press + 3D level and paint a maze on a grid. The player walks through it in first person, like the corridor games of the 1990s. Sprites in a 3D level always turn to face you.

The 3D map editor: paint walls and doors on a grid, place sprites — The map editor. Pencil, rubber, box and fill tools; right-click rubs out; R turns a sprite.

Crystal Maze 3D running in first person, a wooden door ahead — The same level playing. ↑↓ walk, ←→ turn, Space opens doors.

Blocks and doors

9 wall styles to paint with, or draw your own block. Tick It’s a door and it slides open. A locked door only opens when a rule says so, for example once you have a key.

Ceiling, floor, screen

Pick the ceiling and floor colours and the screen size. Name the level and show its name as it starts.

3D rules

Rules for “the player can see”, “is facing a door”, “open the door in front” and more, so a crystal can glow when you spot it and ghosts can chase you round corners.

Wall blocks

Grey StoneBig grey stone blocks.

Red BrickSmall red bricks.

Mossy StoneOld stone with green moss.

Wood PanelsWarm wooden panels.

Blue TilesShiny blue wall tiles.

MetalRiveted steel plates.

Wooden Door🚪 Door · A door that slides open. Press Space in front of it.

Metal Door🚪 Door · A heavy sliding door. Press Space in front of it.

Locked Door🔒 Locked door · Only opens when an event says “Open the door in front”, e.g. once you have a key.

Bigger levels

A level can be bigger than the screen. Tick Bigger screen (it scrolls), choose which sprite the screen follows, and off you go.

The level editor showing Treetop Trek, a level wider than the screen — Treetop Trek in the editor: the screen is the box, the level carries on past it.

Treetop Trek playing: a hero beside a ladder with coins above — The screen follows the hero. Up and down climb the ladder.

Scrolling

Follow a sprite across, up and down, or both. Scores, lives and other displays stay fixed on the screen. Backgrounds can repeat along as you go.

Ladders

Mark any block as a Ladder. Platform sprites climb with ↑ and ↓ and can jump off.

Music

A music channel next to the sound effects. Play a tune, loop it, stop it, set the volume, all from rules.

Pause

Pause the game and switch the controls off and on again, so you can make a pause screen or a cut-scene.

Fade and title

Fade each level in and out, and show its name as it starts.

Layers

Photoshop-style layers in every level. Lock a layer so you cannot nudge it by mistake, hide one to leave it out of the game, and move objects between layers.

Players and saving

Two players

Tick Two players on one keyboard. Player 2 gets their own keys, score and lives, and a column of their own in the event grid.

Saving

Save the game and load it again, from rules. Remember the best score between goes.

High scores

A high score table that asks for a name when a game ends well. Choose how many names it keeps.

Text box

Let the player type: a name, a password, an answer. Rules can read what they wrote.

Questions

A question with answers to pick from. Rules for right, wrong and “try again”, so you can build a quiz in minutes.

Buttons

Buttons can be words, a picture or a tick box. Rules for clicked, ticked and unticked, and actions to disable or hide them.

Player keys

Choose which keys mean up, down, left, right, fire 1 and fire 2 for each player.

About this game

Write who made it and how to play. Shared games show it on their start screen.

Touch buttons

Shared games grow an arrow pad and buttons on iPads and phones. NutHouse picks them from the keys your rules use, or you choose.

Conditions · 79

The When half of a rule. Grouped the way they appear in the picker.

Special · 11

AlwaysRandom chanceGroup is activeThe game is pausedOnly the first timeOnly once while this keeps happeningNot more than once every…Repeat the actions…Compare two values

A door starts to open (3D)

Global values

Compare a global value

Levels · 2

Start of level

Saving

There is a saved game

Timer · 3

EveryTimer reachesCompare the timer

Keyboard & mouse · 8

Upon pressing a keyRepeat while a key is pressedUser clicksMouse button is held downUser clicks on an objectUpon pressing any keyThe mouse is over an objectUser clicks with a button

Player · 4

Compare the scoreCompare the number of livesPlayer presses Fire 1Player presses Fire 2

Player 2 · 4

Compare player 2's scoreCompare player 2's livesPlayer 2 presses Fire 1Player 2 presses Fire 2

Sound · 1

Music is playing

Gravity · 2

Compare gravity strengthGravity is pulling…

Objects · 44

Collisions

Collides with another object (Sprite)Is overlapping another object (Sprite)Collides with a background (Sprite)Is overlapping a background (Sprite)

Position

Leaves the play area (Sprite)Is completely outside the play area (Sprite)Is completely inside the play area (Sprite)Compare X positionCompare Y positionIs near another object (Sprite)Is above another object (Sprite)Is below another object (Sprite)

Movement

Compare speed (Sprite)Is stopped (Sprite)Is moving (Sprite)Is facing a direction (Sprite)

Animation

Animation has finished (Sprite)Is playing an animation (Sprite)

Values

Compare a value (Sprite)Switch is on (Sprite)Switch is off (Sprite)

Visibility

Is visible

Pick or count

Compare the number of these objectsPick one of them at random (Sprite)There are none of these left

Compare the counter (Counter)Tick box is ticked (Button)Time runs out (Timer display)Compare the seconds shown (Timer display)Compare the bar (Health bar)Bar is empty (Health bar)Button is clicked (Button)The player picks the right answer (Question)The player picks a wrong answer (Question)The player presses Enter (Text box)Is showing its last line (Text)The score is good enough for the table (High scores)

Gravity

Lands on the ground (Sprite)Starts falling (Sprite)Bumps its head (Sprite)Is falling (Sprite)Is standing on the ground (Sprite)

Can see another object (3D) (Sprite)Is facing another object (Sprite)

Actions · 115

The Do half of a rule.

Special · 9

Turn on a group of eventsTurn off a group of eventsShake the screenPause the gameCarry on (un-pause)Pause, or carry on if paused

Global values

Set a global valueAdd to a global valueTake away from a global value

Levels · 12

Next levelPrevious levelRestart this levelJump to a levelRestart the gameEnd the gameMake the screen follow an objectStop the screen followingMove the screen to a spot

Saving

Save the gameCarry on from the saved gameForget the saved game

Keyboard & mouse · 2

Hide the mouse pointerShow the mouse pointer

Player · 8

Score

Set scoreAdd to scoreSubtract from score

Lives

Set number of livesAdd livesSubtract lives

Switch off the player's controlsSwitch the player's controls back on

Player 2 · 6

Score

Set player 2's scoreAdd to player 2's scoreTake away from player 2's score

Lives

Set player 2's livesAdd to player 2's livesTake away from player 2's lives

Sound · 6

Play a soundStop all soundsPlay music (loops)Stop the musicStop sound effects (not the music)Set the volume

Create objects · 1

Create an object

Gravity · 3

Set gravity strengthMake gravity pull…Flip gravity upside down

Objects · 68

DestroySet the counter (Counter)Add to the counter (Counter)Subtract from the counter (Counter)Set the textTick it (Button)Untick it (Button)Grey it out (Button)Make it clickable again (Button)Set the time (Timer display)Add time (Timer display)Pause the clock (Timer display)Start the clock again (Timer display)Set the bar (Health bar)Fill the bar up (Health bar)Take some away from the bar (Health bar)Start spawning (Spawner)Stop spawning (Spawner)Make one now (Spawner)Change how often (Spawner)Ask it again (Question)Start typing in it (Text box)Empty it (Text box)Show the next line (Text)Show the line before (Text)Show line number… (Text)Add the score to the table (High scores)Wipe the table (High scores)

Position

Set positionSet X positionSet Y positionWrap round the screen (Sprite)

Direction

Set direction (Sprite)Set direction to a number (Sprite)

Movement

Set speed (Sprite)Stop (Sprite)Start moving (Sprite)Bounce (Sprite)Step towards another object (Sprite)Stick it to the background (Sprite)

Animation

Change animation (Sprite)Restore animation (Sprite)Stop the animation (Sprite)Start the animation again (Sprite)Set the animation speed (Sprite)

Visibility

ShowHideFlash (blink)Fade out and disappearBring to the frontSend to the backMake it see-through (Sprite)

Values

Set a value (Sprite)Add to a value (Sprite)Subtract from a value (Sprite)Number each object (spread a value) (Sprite)Turn a switch on (Sprite)Turn a switch off (Sprite)Flip a switch (Sprite)

Shoot

Shoot an object (Sprite)Shoot at another object (Sprite)

Gravity

Jump (push against gravity) (Sprite)Set falling speed (Sprite)Start falling with gravity (Sprite)Stop feeling gravity (Sprite)

Open the door in front (Sprite)Turn to face another object (Sprite)Look through its eyes (Sprite)

Formulas

In Advanced and Expert mode, any number can be a formula. The ƒx helper lists all of these with examples.

Game values

ScoreLivesTimerFrameNumberMouseXMouseYFrameWidthFrameHeightScore2Lives2ScrollXScrollY

Object values — written as `Name("Object")`

Value	Example
`X`	X("Ball") is how far across the Ball is
`Y`	Y("Ball") is how far down the Ball is
`Speed`	Speed("Ball") is how fast it moves (0-100)
`Direction`	Direction("Ball") is 0 right, 8 up, 16 left, 24 down
`Count`	Count("Brick") is how many Bricks there are
`AnimFrame`	AnimFrame("Hero") is the picture number in the animation
`Value`	Value("Counter") or Value("Hero", "A") for alterable value A
`Flag`	Flag("Hero", 0) is 1 if flag 0 is on, otherwise 0
`Text`	Text("Message") is the words in a String object
`Width`	Width("Hero") is how wide it is
`Height`	Height("Hero") is how tall it is

Functions

Function	Example
`Random`	Random(10) gives a whole number from 0 to 9
`Abs`	Abs(-5) gives 5 (removes the minus sign)
`Min`	Min(3, 7) gives the smaller number, 3
`Max`	Max(3, 7) gives the bigger number, 7
`Floor`	Floor(2.7) rounds down to 2
`Ceil`	Ceil(2.1) rounds up to 3
`Round`	Round(2.5) rounds to the nearest whole number, 3
`Sqrt`	Sqrt(9) gives the square root, 3
`Str`	Str(42) turns a number into text "42"
`Val`	Val("42") turns text into the number 42
`Len`	Len("hello") gives the number of letters, 5
`Left`	Left("hello", 2) gives the first letters, "he"
`Right`	Right("hello", 2) gives the last letters, "lo"
`Mid`	Mid("hello", 1, 3) gives "ell"
`Distance`	Distance(X("Hero"), Y("Hero"), X("Ghost"), Y("Ghost")) gives how far apart they are, in pixels
`Angle`	Angle(X("Hero"), Y("Hero"), X("Ghost"), Y("Ghost")) gives the direction (0 to 31) from the first point to the second
`Global`	Global("A") is global value A, which keeps its number from level to level

Sprite editor

Tools

✏️ Pencil BEraser ELine LBox RFilled box ⇧RCircle OFilled circle ⇧OPaint bucket GColour picker ISelect SHot spotAction point

Brush sizes with [ and ]. Flip left-right, flip upside down, turn a quarter. Zoom from 1× to 32×. Left and right mouse buttons each have their own colour, plus see-through.

Animations

Stopped, walking, running, jumping, falling, appearing, disappearing, bouncing and shooting, or add your own. A 32-way facing compass, frames you can copy and reorder, speed from 1 to 30 pictures a second, repeat forever, and onion skin to see the picture before.

Resize without stretching. Import a picture or a whole sprite sheet (across × down); a plain background can be made see-through on the way in.

Makers

Select part of a picture, then move, copy and paste it (⌘C, ⌘V), even into another sprite. 8 directions and 32 directions fill in the other facings by turning the picture round. Flip all, Spin (seven new pictures turning round), Shrink (a disappearing animation) and Morph to next (in-between pictures).

Animate in the editor

Switch on Animate in the level editor to see every sprite moving where it stands.

The 32-colour palette

#000000#1d2b53#7e2553#008751#ab5236#5f574f#c2c3c7#fff1e8#ff004d#ffa300#ffec27#00e436#29adff#83769c#ff77a8#ffccaa#291814#111d35#422136#125359#742f29#49333b#a28879#f3ef7d#be1250#ff6c24#a8e72e#00b543#065ab5#754665#ff6e59#ff9d81

Levels

Level editor

Select, drag, box-select, Alt-drag to duplicate, snap to grid. Zoom with ⌘+ and ⌘−, ⌘0 to fit. Arrow keys nudge, Shift nudges 10px. The pointer’s x,y shows in the corner. The grey area around the level is off-screen.

Level settings

Name, width and height (64 to 4096), background colour, background picture (stretched, tiled or repeating along; built-in or your own), gravity direction and strength, a bigger scrolling screen, fade in and out, show the name.

Draw a path

Give a sprite the Follows a path movement and draw the path with the mouse, right on the level. Paths show dotted when selected.

Copy and paste

⌘C, ⌘X and ⌘V for objects and for rules. Paste into another level, or into another game entirely.

Make a grid

Copy any object into rows and columns with a gap. A wall of 40 bricks in one go.

Solid settings

Any block or background can be Just decoration, Solid, a Platform you can jump up through, or a Ladder.

Game tab

Live thumbnails of every level with size, object and rule counts. Add, edit, duplicate, delete, and drag levels into order (Option-drag to copy).

Play

Play level runs the one you are editing. Play game starts from level 1. Restart any time. Esc to stop.

Sounds

17 built-in sounds and tunes, made by code so they are tiny. Listen to any of them in the library. Or import your own.

♪ Bounce♪ Coin♪ Jump♪ Hit♪ Explosion♪ Power up♪ Lose♪ Laser♪ Power down♪ Door♪ Footstep♪ Splash♪ Win♪ Game over♪ Click♪ Adventure tune♪ Spooky tune+ Import your own

Modes

MODE 1

Simple

Just the main pieces. Great for starting out.

MODE 2

Advanced

More events, movements and objects.

MODE 3

Expert

Everything: formulas, values, switches and groups.

Teach me, and other tricks

Teach me

Press Teach me while playing. The first time two kinds of sprite touch and no rule says what should happen, the game stops and asks you. Pick an answer and the rule is written for you.

Search and “Only”

Search your rules, or show only the ones about one object. Big games stay easy to read.

Groups and comments

Put rules in groups, switch a group on and off from a rule, and leave comments between rows. A group can run on every level.

Red rules

One-off triggers are marked in red. Any other rule can be set to happen only once, once while true, not more than every so often, or repeat a number of times.

Object groups

Put Slime, Bat and Ghost in a group called Enemies and write one rule for all of them.

Global values

Values A to Z that every level shares, plus each object’s own values and switches, in Expert mode.

Pick and count

Pick a random one, test when none are left, or compare how many there are.

Mouse and keys

Right-click, double-click, the mouse over an object, any key pressed, hide the pointer.

How NutHouse works

A built-in guide with a page for each idea: levels, sprites, movements, layers, 3D levels, events, gravity, saving and sharing.

Sample games · 7

Every sample opens in NutHouse with all its rules, so you can see how it is made and change it.

Chocobreak

Bounce the ball and smash every brick.

Teaches: Bouncing, collisions, lives

Play it

Coin Quest

Run, jump, squash slimes and reach the flag. Two levels!

Teaches: Platform movement, gravity events, levels

Play it

Treetop Trek

A long level that scrolls: climb ladders, dodge spells, reach the flag.

Teaches: Scrolling, ladders, music, pause

Play it

Wing It

Flap through the gaps between pipes.

Teaches: World gravity, jump, spawners, buttons

Play it

Star Defender

Blast the aliens before they reach you.

Teaches: Creating objects, chasing, explosions

Play it

Crystal Maze 3D

Walk the maze in 3D, collect crystals and find the key. (Advanced)

Teaches: 3D levels, doors, “can see”

Play it

Dungeon Key

Find the key, dodge the ghosts and escape the dungeon.

Teaches: Top-down movement, counters, doors

Play it

The Chocobreak tutorial

Build a bat-and-ball game step by step, and learn how events work.

Let's make Chocobreak!
This is your level
Add a paddle
Move it to the bottom
How does it move?
Try it!
Add the ball
Put the ball above the paddle
Speed up the ball
Add a brick
Build a wall
What happens now?
Rules make the game
When the ball hits a brick…
…smash the brick
…and bounce the ball
Test your first rule
Bounce off the paddle
Keep the ball on the screen
Keep the paddle on the screen
Keep score
Points for every brick
Three lives
Losing a life
Game over
A message for winners
Winning!
Play your game!
Save it
You made a game! 🎉

Keyboard shortcuts

New game⌘N

Open⌘O

Save⌘S

Share…⌘E

Undo / Redo⌘Z / ⇧⌘Z

Play level⌘R

Play game⇧⌘R

Stop playingEsc

Levels / Level / Events tab⌘1 / ⌘2 / ⌘3

Duplicate⌘D

Select all⌘A

Nudge / nudge 10pxArrows / ⇧Arrows

Copy / Cut / Paste⌘C / ⌘X / ⌘V

Zoom in / out / fit⌘+ / ⌘− / ⌘0

Delete⌫

Sprite editor toolsB E L R O G I S