Moving Platforms

Problem

You need moving platforms in your 2D platformer.

Solution

There are several ways to approach this problem. In this recipe, we’ll use AnimatableBody2Ds for our platform and move it with a Tween. This allows for a variety of movement styles while minimizing the amount of code we need to write.

Info

You can also implement this moving platform technique using an AnimationPlayer rather than a tween. Much of the setup will be the same, but rather than tween code, you’ll animate the body’s position property.

Setting up

We’ll start with a basic platformer setup using the Platform character recipe. The basic movement from that recipe will work fine with the platforms. If you’ve modified it or used your own, everything should still work the same.

Creating the platform

The platform scene contains the following nodes:

Node2D (“MovingPlatform”): The Node2D parent is there to act as the “anchor” or start point for the platform. We’ll animate the platform’s position relative to this parent node.
- AnimatableBody2D: This represents the platform itself. This is the node that will move.
  - Sprite2D: You can use a sprite sheet here, individual images, or even a TileMap.
  - CollisionShape2D: Don’t make the hitbox too big, or the player will appear to be “hovering” off the edge of the platform.

Set up the Sprite2D’s Texture and the collision shape appropriately. In the AnimatableBody2D, set the Sync to Physics property “On”. Since we’re moving the body in code, this ensures that it’s moved during the physics step, keeping it in sync with the player and other physics bodies.

Now add a script to the root Node2D:

extends Node2D

@export var offset = Vector2(0, -320)
@export var duration = 5.0

func _ready():
    start_tween()

func start_tween():
    var tween = get_tree().create_tween().set_process_mode(Tween.TWEEN_PROCESS_PHYSICS)
    tween.set_loops().set_parallel(false)
    tween.tween_property($AnimatableBody2d, "position", offset, duration / 2)
    tween.tween_property($AnimatableBody2d, "position", Vector2.ZERO, duration / 2)

We’ve used a few of Tween’s options here to make everything work smoothly:

set_process_mode(): ensures that all movement takes place during the physics processing step.
set_loops(): this makes the tween repeat.
set_parallel(false): by default, all tween_property() changes would happen at that same time. This makes the two happen one after another: moving to one end of the offset, then back to the start.

Using the two exported properties, you can adjust the platform’s movement. Set the offset to determine where the tween moves relative to its starting point, and the duration to determine how long it takes to complete the cycle.

Add some platforms in your level/world and try them out:

Download This Project

Download the project code here: https://github.com/godotrecipes/2d_moving_platforms

Platform character