Controls: keyboard, mouse, touch and gamepad
One Game a Day does not impose a control scheme. Every game is a separate piece of work with its own controls, and its page says what is known about them.
Where a game's controls are listed
Two places on the game page tell you how a game is played.
"Plays with". The line under the Play button, and the "About this game" box, name the kinds of input the game supports. There are four kinds:
| Input | Typical use |
|---|---|
| Keyboard | Keys such as the arrow keys, W A S D or Space. |
| Mouse | Moving the pointer, clicking and dragging. |
| Touch | Tapping and dragging on a touchscreen, often with on-screen buttons. |
| Gamepad | A connected game controller. |
"Controls". Below the description, a panel lists the individual controls and what each one does, grouped under Keyboard, Mouse, Touch and Gamepad.
As an illustration, the metadata supplied with the launch game Void Drifter describes its controls like this:
| Input | Control | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Keyboard | W A S D / Arrow keys | Move |
| Keyboard | Space | Dash |
| Mouse | Move the pointer | Aim (firing is automatic) |
| Touch | Left joystick | Move |
| Touch | DASH button | Dash |
A "How to play" paragraph above the panel explains the aim of the game when the developer has written one.
Where this information comes from
The control list and the instructions are written by whoever prepared the game for release. When the kinds of input are not stated, the platform works them out by reading the game's code for keyboard, mouse, touch and gamepad handling.
That automatic check can only tell which kinds of input a game listens for. It cannot name individual keys. A game page may therefore show "Plays with" but no Controls panel; in that case, look for instructions inside the game itself.
Keyboard
When a game finishes loading, keyboard focus moves into it automatically. If the game stops responding to keys, click or tap once inside the game to give it focus again.
While focus is inside a game, key presses go to the game and not to the page. Site shortcuts such as / for search work again once you click outside the game.
Mouse
Most mouse games simply follow the pointer and your clicks.
Some games capture the mouse pointer, so that moving the mouse looks around instead of moving a cursor. Browsers release a captured pointer when you press Esc. The launch game Treadhaven works this way: its instructions say to click the landscape to capture the mouse, and that Esc pauses and releases it.
Touch
Games that list Touch can be played on a phone or tablet. On a touch device the game fills the browser window when you press Play; see The game page and player controls.
Not every game supports touch. If "Plays with" names only keyboard and mouse, the game is meant for a computer.
Gamepad
The player lets a game use a connected gamepad. Whether a particular game supports one is up to that game: if it does, "Plays with" lists Gamepad and the Controls panel may list its buttons.
Orientation hints on phones
Some games are built for a particular screen shape. When a game states one, the "About this game" box has a "Best on" line reading either "Wide screens (landscape)" or "Tall screens (portrait)".
For a game made for a wide screen, the player does two more things on a touch device:
- If you start the game while holding the device upright, a message asks you to turn it sideways. Turn the device and the message goes away, or press Play upright anyway to dismiss it.
- When you enter full screen, the player asks the browser to lock the screen to landscape. Not every browser allows this; where it is refused, nothing else changes.
Games that prefer a tall screen get the "Best on" line only. There is no prompt for them.
Related pages
- Devices and browsers for what is needed and what has been tested.
- Troubleshooting if keys or sound do not respond.