Roller Coaster MakerHow to build a roller coaster and ride it
Roller Coaster Maker is a free roller coaster builder you play online. You lay the track one piece at a time, finish it, then ride it from the front seat. It is simple enough for young kids, and the game fixes your track if a piece would crash, so you cannot break it. Here is how a first coaster goes.
1. Pick a park
Press Build on the main menu and choose a park: Wild West, Sky Islands or Launch Base. Your coaster stays in that park. Each park has its own ground, its own carts and its own special pieces.
2. Lay the track
The bar at the bottom has Left, Straight, Right, Up and Down. Each tap adds the next piece. Go up to build a lift hill, then down for the drop. Supports grow under the track on their own. Made a mistake? Back removes the last piece.
You cannot break it. If a piece would crash into the ground, the rocks or your own track, the game fixes the track for you so the coaster keeps working and you keep building. That makes it easy for young players, while older players can still go wild with big drops and twisting layouts.
The Special tab has pieces for the park you are in, and Camera lets you look at the track from other angles.
3. Finish the coaster
When you are happy, press Finish. The game builds the track back to the station for you. A card then shows the length, the top speed, the biggest drop and how many pieces you used. Finishing coasters also unlocks new carts and achievements.
4. Ride it
Press Ride it! to ride from the seat. You can switch to a chase camera or watch from the side. While you ride, the game shows your speed in mph and the G-force on the cart, so you can tell which drop hits hardest. At the end you get a thrill rating, then you can ride again or keep building.
5. Share it
Press Share it to get a short code. Anyone can type that code into the park search to ride your coaster. A shared coaster is public and is locked, so it stays the way you built it.
Controls
| Action | Mouse or touch | Keyboard |
|---|---|---|
| Straight | Straight button | W or Space |
| Left / right | Left / Right buttons | A / D |
| Up / down | Up / Down buttons | E or R / Q or F |
| Loop | Loop button | 5 |
| Undo the last piece | Back | Backspace, B or Ctrl+Z |
| Finish the coaster | Finish | Enter |
A game controller works too.
Tips for a better ride
- Height is speed. A tall lift hill gives you the speed for everything after it.
- Watch the G-force. Tight dips at high speed push the number up. Try a few shapes and see what feels best.
- Leave room to come home. Finish needs space to get back to the station, so do not box yourself in.
- Ride other people's coasters. The park list shows popular and featured coasters. It is the quickest way to get ideas.