6 SpaceInvaders

Scratch Lesson 6 Space Invaders
Introducing Scratch
5 – Space Invaders
In this exercise we will recreate the classic video game Space Invaders. Although an old
game like space invaders might seem quite simple there is actually a lot going on. Plus there
are a lot of sprites. So getting it working like the original will take some work.
To save you some of the work, you can use existing sprites and sounds that are similar to
ones from the original game. Your teacher might be able to provide you with a copy of these
sprites & sounds or you can download them as a zip file from the website at the bottom of the
page.
© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 1 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 1. Create the Background

1. Make a new Scratch file and delete the default cat sprite.
2. Modify the stage Backdrop to look similar to the following example.
3. If you have the collection of provided sprites, you can import the image called backdrop.
Fun Fact In the original Space Invaders game, every time you destroyed an enemy ship,
the rest of them began moving faster. That wasn’t intentional. Because of the limitations of
the hardware, the game simply played faster when there were fewer sprites on the screen.
When the game’s creators realised it got faster as you progressed they didn’t mind since they
thought it added more challenge. That ‘feature’ of speeding up wasn’t actually in the code
though. We won’t be adding that ‘feature’ in our version but for an added challenge, you
might be able to work out a way to make yours work that way.

Exercise 2. Creating the Player Sprite

1. Create a new sprite and call it Player.
2. Paint 2 costumes for the sprite. One for the normal version of the player ship and one for
the destroyed version of the player ship. You can import the provided versions of the
sprites if they are available.
Tip If you are drawing them, zoom in close to make it easier.

3. If you are left with a blank costume you can remove it.
4. Remember to Check the costume centre and adjust the centre if needed.
Exercise 3. Moving the Player Sprite

The player sprite needs to move when the left and right arrow keys are pressed which will be
simple enough.
1. Add the code blocks to the right to set controls and
starting position. Test the movement with your
arrow keys when done.

Exercise 4. Adding Shields

The shields in the game don’t do much other than provide a bit of cover for the player. In the
original game, shots from the player or the enemies took pieces out of the shields but we
won’t do that in this version as that would get a bit complicated.
1. Add 4 new sprites for shields as shown below (the image is in the provided sprites).
Tip If you want to position a sprite exactly, drag a Go to x y box in to the script area. Type
in the coordinates you want to move it to. Then click that single
block to run it. You can then remove the block when done by dragging it back in to the script
area.
The coordinates for each shield in the example shown above are:
-140, -120
-50, -120
50, -120
140, -120
Important Remember to save regularly. Now would certainly be a good time to save
what you have done. There’s a lot of work involved in a project like this and you wouldn’t
want to lose a lot of work if something goes wrong.
Exercise 5. Adding an Invader

Our final game will have a total of 50 invader ships arranged in 5 rows. These invader sprites
will have more programming blocks than any other sprites. To make things easier, we will
only one enemy ship to start with. Then when that is working correctly, we will make copies
of it. Otherwise, every time we add something new to the code blocks for the enemy ships,
we would have to do it 50 times.
1. Create a new sprite called Invader Yellow 1.
There will be 2 rows of yellow invaders with 10 on each row but for now we’ll just do one of
them.

2. Create / import costumes for the sprite as shown.
3. Add the following script blocks.
Explanation - When the program starts this sprite will:

 Move to the starting position
 Set to show and set to display the first costume. This is because this sprite may have
been hidden from being destroyed in a previous game.
 Switch between the two costumes every half a second.
4. Click the start button to test the sprite so far.
Exercise 6. Adding Movement to an Invader

The invader will need to move sideways. When we have several invaders, they will move
together in unison. When any of the invaders reaches the right of the screen, they will move
downwards slightly (closer to the player). They will also continue moving in the opposite
direction.

First we’ll simply get it moving.

1. Create a variable called Direction.
We will use this variable to determine which way the invaders will move. When the invaders
reach the right side of the screen, the direction variable will change to a negative number (so
they will move left). When the invaders reach the left side of the screen, the variable will
change to a positive number (so they will move right).
2. Add the following code blocks (you can place them next to your existing blocks).
Explanation - When the program starts this sprite will:

 Set the Direction variable to 5. This will be used to determine how far the sprite will
move with each step.
 A loop begins
 The sprite will move a small amount, wait half a second and then move again. The
half second pauses will be in time with the costume changes.

 An if block checks to see if the sprite has reached the right side of the stage (190 x
coordinates). If it has, the direction variable will change so that the sprite starts
moving the other way (movie a negative x value goes to the left).
 Another If block checks to see if the sprite has reached the left edge. If it has, it
changes direction to the right.
When the invader reaches the edge it changes direction but it also needs to move downward.
That way each time they move all the way across the screen they move closer to the player.
Eventually if the player isn’t careful, they get to the bottom and the game ends.
We already have If blocks that detect when the invader reaches the side of the screen. We
could add a block in there that makes it move down. The problem is that when an invader
reaches the edge, they all need to move down. Not just the one that reached the edge. So how
do we tell them all to move?
The solution is broadcasts. A broadcast allows a sprite to send a message to all the other
sprites. In this case, when an invader reaches the edge, it will send a message to all the others
that it’s time to move down a bit. As invaders sprites receive that message, they will then
move down.
3. Add a Broadcast block to the first If block.
4. Click the arrow at the end of the broadcast block.

5. Select new message and enter Move Down for the message.
6. Right-click the broadcast block and then select duplicate.

7. Put the new copy in to the other If block.
Now when the invader reaches the side it will send out a message. Remember that all the
other invader sprites will have the same code as this one. Now we will add a block that will
move the sprite downward whenever it receives a “move down” message from another sprite.

8. Add the following code blocks. Make sure the message is set to “Move Down”.
Now any time a sprite receives the Move Down message, it will move down (negative y
value) as well as changing direction.
9. Test the program to check that the sprite correctly changes direction and moves down
when it reaches the edge.
Notice that our Direction variable is showing on the stage. That can be useful while you’re
testing to make sure it works but once you’ve got the movement working, you no longer need
it showing.
10. Right-click the Direction variable on the stage and choose hide.
Exercise 7. Add the Player Shooting

When the player presses the spacebar, the player sprite will shoot. When an invader sprite is
shot, it will disappear and add points to the score. When all of the invaders have been
destroyed, they will re-appear so that a new level can begin.
1. Create a new sprite called Bullet.
2. Draw / Import a small vertical line to act as the bullet.
If you have the sound files available then we’ll import the shoot sound. Otherwise you can
skip these steps along with any pink sound blocks.
3. With the Bullet sprite still selected click the Sounds tab.
4. Click the small x icon to remove the default pop sound.

5. Click the Upload sound from file icon and select the sound file called Shoot.
6. You can click the play button beneath the imported sound to preview it.
7. On the scripts tab add the following script blocks so that the bullet sprite is hidden until it
is needed.
8. Now add the following script blocks
Explanation – When the player presses the spacebar the following happens
 The bullet will move to the current position of the player sprite
 The hidden bullet will now become visible
 The shoot sound will play
 A loop begins which will make the bullet continually move upward
If you press the spacebar it should work fine. The problem is when the bullet reaches to top it
won’t stop. We’ll add some extra code to make it stop when it reaches the top.
9. Add an if block inside the forever block so that it looks like the following.

Explanation – The If block will check the current Y (vertical) position of the bullet. When it
goes past a certain point near the top it will do the following.
 Return to the current position of the player sprite
 Become hidden again
 Stop everything in this script from running so that it no longer moves.
10. Test the program. Now when you press space the bullet will move upwards. This time
though, when it reaches the top it will be ready for firing again.
Currently we have those shields that aren’t doing anything but we don’t want bullets to go
through them.
11. Add the following If section to your code so that bullets no longer go through the shields.
The if block will activate when the bullet comes in to contact with the colour the shields
are made of (click the colour square in the block and then click on one of the shields to
select the colour).
Hint The parts inside the if block are the same as the if block you just did so you can right-
click and duplicate them.
Exercise 8. Destroying Invaders

When an invader gets shot a few things need to happen. It will disappear. It will send a
message to the bullet sprite so that it can move back to the player sprite. It will also add some
points to a score variable.
1. Select the Invader Yellow 1 variable and select the Variables category.
2. Add a variable called Score.

3. Add / Import a new costume for the invader being destroyed
4. Import the Invader Destroyed sound.

Explanation – When the program starts, a loop for this sprite will begin. Within that loop is
an if block which checks to see if the sprite is touching the bullet sprite. When it is touching
the bullet:
 A broadcast will be sent. We will use this in the bullet sprite so that it can return to the
player sprite.
 10 points is added to the score
 The costume changes to a small explosion
 A sound plays
 The sprite disappears.
6. Select the Bullet sprite and add the following code blocks.
Explanation – When one of the invader sprites get hit the bullet will
 Return to the position of the player sprite
 Become hidden
 Stop other bullet scripts so that it stops moving until the player shoots again.

Exercise 9. Bombs Away

A game can end in 2 ways. When the invaders get to close to the bottom or when the player is
hit by a falling bomb. In this section we’ll add those 2 game end conditions. We’ll start by
adding the bombs.
1. Create a new sprite called Bomb.
2. Draw / import a sprite for the bomb.
3. In the Costumes tab, right-click the costume to make a duplicate.
4. Click the Flip left-right button in the top corner of the drawing area so that the second
costume is reversed.
We will make the bomb appear at the top of the screen in a random position after a random
number of seconds. For the purpose of testing we’ll make the delay short for now but we’ll
make it longer once it’s working properly.
Explanation – When the program begins the bomb will be hidden. A loop then begins.
There will be a pause for 1 or 2 seconds (later we’ll increase the duration). Then the bomb
will appear in a random location along the top.
Now we’ll add a loop that will make the bomb move downward while swapping between the
two costumes. We only want it to keep on looping enough times for it to reach the bottom.

6. Add the following before the end of your existing forever block. In this example the loop
will repeat 70 times but you may need to adjust the number of repetitions until it’s just
right.
Now we need to add 2 if blocks. One of them will make a bomb hide and return to the top of
it hits a shield, since it’s not supposed to go through a shield. The other if block will send a
“Game Over” broadcast when the bomb touches the player sprite.
7. Add the following 2 If blocks before the end of your repeat 70 block.
If the bomb touches

the shield colour
New message
Lastly, we’ll add a hide block at the end of the main loop so that the bomb will disappear
when it reaches the bottom. Otherwise it will stay there until it is told to appear at the top
again.
8. Select the Player sprite and add the following script blocks.
9. Test the program. You might need to deliberately move under the bomb to see it work.

Our other game over condition is when the invaders get close to the bottom.
10. Select the Invader Yellow 1 sprite and add the following script blocks.
11. Test the game to make sure it ends correctly when the invader sprite reaches the top of the
shields.
Tip If you don’t feel like waiting for the invader to move down several rows, you can drag
it while the game is running. Simply drag it to a position a bit higher than the top of the
shields so you don’t have to wait so long.
Now to increase the random interval for the bomb and then make a few duplicates.
12. Select the Bomb sprite and change the wait interval amounts
13. Right-click on the bomb sprite and select duplicate.
14. Make 2 more duplicates (you can add even more if you want it to be extra challenging but
4 should do for now.
Exercise 10. Adding a Win Condition

When all of the invaders have been destroyed, we want them all to appear again as a new
wave of invaders. So it will be like starting another level with the score continuing. Like most
things in programming there is more than one way to do it.
The way we will do it is with a variable. Every time an invader gets hit we will add 1 to the
variable. Since we will eventually have 50 invaders, we will set it so that when that variable
reaches 50, a broadcast message will cause each of the invaders to re-appear in their original
positions.
This will be a little tricky to test. We could all the rest of the invaders now by copying our
current one but that would mean that we would then have to add the invader reset code to
each of them.
Instead, we’ll add the new code now so there’s less work, but we won’t be able to test it until
we add the rest of our 50 invader sprites.

1. Select the Stage in the sprites area.

2. Create a new variable called “Invaders Destroyed”.
3. Add the following code blocks. One that will reset the score to 0 at the start of each game
and another that will reset our new variable to 0 at the start of each game.
4. Now add some new code blocks that will check to see if the Invaders Destroyed variable
has reached 50. Once it has, a message will be broadcast and the variable will be set back
to 0 so a new level can start.
5. Select the Invader Yellow 1 sprite.

We need to make 2 changes to this sprite. One that will add 1 to the Invaders Destroyed
variable when this sprite is hit. Another that will reset this sprite to its original position when
it receives the New Level message.

6. In the “touching bullet” section we’ll add 2 new blocks. One to add to the variable and
another that moves the sprite further up when it’s hit. Otherwise it might keep on moving
down and give the player a shock when a sprite they already destroyed reaches the
bottom, making them lose. This will move it up enough to put it beyond any other
invaders that are still in play.
7. Finally add the following blocks. These will move the sprite to its original position when
it receives the New Level message.
Exercise 11. Invaders Everywhere!!

Now it’s time to add the rest of our 50 invaders. We’ll do that by duplicating the one we’ve
already put so much work in to and then changing each one slightly.
1. Right-Click on your Invader sprite and select duplicate.
2. In the starting code blocks, change the position so that it will start 30 pixels to the left of
your first invader.
3. You will also need to make the same change to your New Level blocks.
4. Test the program and you will now have 2 space invaders moving neatly together.
Now for the rest of them. Warning – this is the fiddly part.

5. Make more copies of the sprite until there are 20 of them. They need to be arranged in to
2 rows with 10 on each row. Use the following table so you know the coordinates for
each one. The invaders on each row are 30 pixels apart. Each row is 20 pixels apart.
x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20 y: 20
x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80
y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0 y: 0
6. Now make a duplicate of your last invader sprite. The next 2 rows will use different
costumes and will give a higher score when they are shot.
7. Change the name of this copy to Invader Orange 1.
8. Change both of the costumes by drawing / importing orange invader images.
Tip You can drag costumes up or down to re-arrange
their order.

9. In the scripts section change each switch costume block to refer to the orange costumes if
needed.
10. Change the starting and new level coordinates to the following

11. For the orange sprites they will score 20 points when hit instead of 10 so make the
appropriate change.
12. Now make copies of the orange sprite until there are 20 of them.
13. Modify the starting and new level coordinates for each orange sprite as follows.
x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60 y: 60
x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80
y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40 y: 40
Now for the last row…

14. Make a duplicate of your last invader sprite. This last row will again use different
costumes and will award an even higher score.
15. Change the name of this copy to Invader Red 1.
16. Change both of the costumes by drawing / importing red invader images.
17. In the scripts section change each switch costume block to refer to the red costumes if
needed.
18. Change the starting and new level coordinates to the following
19. Change the score increase to 30
20. Now make copies of the orange sprite until there are 10 of them.

21. Modify the starting and new level coordinates for each orange sprite as follows.
x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80 y: 80
22. Now give the game a good test. When you hit the invaders, they’ll add to your score
depending on what row they’re on. When the bombs hit your or the invaders reach you,
game over. If you manage to destroy them all, they’ll reset to you can clear another wave
of them.
Tip If you have trouble destroying them all before getting hit or having them reach the
bottom, go to the stage and modify the number of invaders that need to be destroyed to a
smaller amount. Then you won’t have to destroy as many to see if the reset works.
23. Now that we’ve got the main parts working, hide the Invaders Destroyed variable from
your stage and move the Score variable in to a suitable spot.
Exercise 12. Finishing Touches

Now to put the final touches on the game. Firstly, we’ll add the flying saucer that would
occasionally appear across the top during the game. Lastly, we’ll add a high score variable.
1. Create a new sprite called Saucer.
2. Draw / Import a Saucer costume.
3. Import the Saucer sound.

4. Add the following code blocks.
Explanation – When the program begins, the Saucer will be hidden and then a loop will
start.
 Waits a between 10 and 30 seconds before appearing in the top left corner of the
stage.
 Plays a sound.
 Starts a loop that repeats enough times for it to move to the other side (you might
need to adjust the number of repetitions until it’s about right).
 While the loop repeats, it will move and flash different colours.
The saucer can be shot just like any of the other invaders, only it awards a cool 200 points if
you manage to hit it.
5. Add the following script blocks to the saucer (import the Invader Destroyed sound if
you want that to play when this sprite is shot).

Exercise 13. High Score

Last of all we’ll add a high score variable. When the score becomes greater than the high
score, then the high score will increase to match it.
1. Select the Stage.
2. Create a High Score variable.
3. Add to the first block of code so that it looks like the following.
4. Move the high score variable to a suitable spot on the stage.
Exercise 14. Script Reference

Just in case you get stuck and want to check what your code blocks should look like, you can
refer to the following.
Stage

Player Sprite
Bullet Sprite

Bomb Sprite
Saucer Sprite

Invader Sprites
Remember that each invader sprite will have different coordinates, scores and costumes.

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Scratch Lesson 6 Space Invaders

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 1 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 1. Create the Background

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 2 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 2. Creating the Player Sprite

Tip If you are drawing them, zoom in close to make it easier.

Exercise 3. Moving the Player Sprite

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 3 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 4. Adding Shields

Exercise 5. Adding an Invader

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 4 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

2. Create / import costumes for the sprite as shown.

3. Add the following script blocks.

Explanation - When the program starts this sprite will:

Exercise 6. Adding Movement to an Invader

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 5 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

First we’ll simply get it moving.

Explanation - When the program starts this sprite will:

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 6 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

4. Click the arrow at the end of the broadcast block.

6. Right-click the broadcast block and then select duplicate.

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 7 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 7. Add the Player Shooting

4. Click the small x icon to remove the default pop sound.

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8. Now add the following script blocks

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Exercise 8. Destroying Invaders

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3. Add / Import a new costume for the invader being destroyed

4. Import the Invader Destroyed sound.

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Exercise 9. Bombs Away

3. In the Costumes tab, right-click the costume to make a duplicate.

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If the bomb touches

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13. Right-click on the bomb sprite and select duplicate.

Exercise 10. Adding a Win Condition

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1. Select the Stage in the sprites area.

5. Select the Invader Yellow 1 sprite.

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Exercise 11. Invaders Everywhere!!

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x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

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x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

Now for the last row…

19. Change the score increase to 30

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x: -190 x: -160 x: -130 x: -100 x: -70 x: -40 x: -10 x: 20 x: 50 x: 80

Exercise 12. Finishing Touches

2. Draw / Import a Saucer costume.

3. Import the Saucer sound.

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 19 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

4. Add the following code blocks.

© Steve O’Neil 2017 Page 20 of 24 http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/

Exercise 13. High Score