Coding Education

6 min read

Make Your First Scratch Game — A Kids' Step-by-Step Guide

Hafiz Rahman

Lead Coding Instructor at Algonova Malaysia

Make Your First Scratch Game — A Kids' Step-by-Step Guide

Does your child already play games all the time, and just asked: "Can I make my own game?" The answer is yes, it's free, and it can be finished in one afternoon.

This guide covers six steps from empty to a game someone else can actually play. Written so a child can follow it alone, and so you understand what they're actually doing.

What Is Scratch

Scratch is a free program from MIT Media Lab for building games, animations, and interactive stories without typing any code — kids snap together colorful blocks like a puzzle.

Three things to know before starting:

Completely free. Runs directly in the browser at scratch.mit.edu, nothing to install.
Works on a laptop or tablet. Unlike Roblox Studio, which only runs on a computer, Scratch just needs a modern browser.
No fluent reading required. Full Scratch (age 7+) uses short-text blocks; ScratchJr for ages 5-6 uses no text at all.

Six Steps to a First Game

1. Open scratch.mit.edu and click Create

No account needed to start building — an account is only needed to save the project online or share it later.

2. Pick a sprite, don't start from a blank canvas

Click the cat icon in the bottom-right corner to pick a character (sprite) from the built-in gallery. For a first game, use an existing character — drawing your own sprite can come later.

3. Move the character with arrow keys

Snap together: "when green flag clicked" → "forever" → "if right arrow key pressed then change x by 10". Click the green flag, and the character moves when the arrow is pressed.

4. Add something to catch or avoid

Add a second sprite — a fruit, coin, or enemy. Use the "touching [sprite]" block in the Sensing category to detect collisions between sprites.

5. Add a score

Click "Make a Variable" in the Variables category, name it "Score". Add a "change Score by 1" block every time the main sprite touches the target object.

6. Share it

Click "Share" in the top-right corner (needs a free account). The game instantly gets a link that can be sent to friends to play.

Three Mistakes That Most Often Stop Kids

1. Starting with too big an idea. "I want to make a full RPG with lots of levels." That kind of game takes months. Kids who start there usually quit within days.

2. Copying blocks without understanding them. Copying a YouTube tutorial block-by-block gives fast results, but the moment the game doesn't work as planned, the child doesn't know what to fix.

3. Stopping the moment it doesn't work first try. This is normal — even professional programmers deal with this daily. What matters is the habit of checking blocks one at a time, not giving up on the first attempt.

What Age Can a Child Start

ScratchJr for ages 5-6 — picture blocks with no text, suited for kids who aren't reading fluently yet. Full Scratch for age 7 and up — blocks with short text, capable of more complex logic like conditions and variables.

If Your Child Gets Stuck

Some kids figure it out through trial and error, and that's great. Some stop at step four or five — not because they can't do it, but because no one answered "why won't my sprite move" right when it mattered.

In Algonova's Scratch classes, kids learn directly with a certified teacher, in small groups — until the game is genuinely finished and playable. The first trial class is free, with no obligation to continue.

In Short

Scratch is free, runs in the browser with nothing to install, and a first game can be finished in one to two hours. The key isn't talent, but three things: start with a simple idea, understand each block used, and don't stop when the first attempt doesn't work.

How to Make a Scratch Game — FAQ

Is Scratch free?

Yes, completely free and runs directly in the browser at scratch.mit.edu. There's no paid version needed to make a game.

Can you make a Scratch game on a phone or tablet?

Possible on a tablet with a modern browser, but a laptop is more comfortable since arranging blocks needs precise drag-and-drop. Phone screens are usually too small to work with comfortably.

Does a child need to read first?

For full Scratch, basic reading helps since blocks have short text. For kids who aren't reading fluently yet, ScratchJr (ages 5-6) uses icons with no text at all.

How long does a first Scratch game take?

A simple game with movement and scoring can be finished in one to two hours. What usually makes it take longer isn't technical difficulty, but an initial idea that's too complex for a beginner.

Why isn't my game working as planned?

That's normal and part of the process, not a sign of failure. Click blocks one at a time to see which step isn't behaving as expected. Re-reading the block sequence is the actual debugging skill being practiced.

What age can a child start making games in Scratch?

ScratchJr suits ages 5-6, full Scratch suits age 7 and up. There's no upper limit — teens new to coding can also start with Scratch.

Make Your First Scratch Game — A Kids' Step-by-Step Guide

What Is Scratch