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Beginner path: make and publish your first game

New to Jabali? Follow these six stages in order. By the end, you’ll have made a game with Bali, changed it, published it and added new features to it, without writing code.

The path follows the six-part cave arcade tutorial series, with the guides you need at each stage. It takes about an hour to read, or about 50 minutes if you watch the tutorial videos instead.

Stage 1: Get set up

Section titled “Stage 1: Get set up”

Install Studio and learn the handful of terms the rest of the docs use.

  1. Install Jabali Studio
  2. Sign in
  3. Key concepts

You can now open Studio and know what Bali, templates, Sparks and publishing mean.

Stage 2: Make your first game

Section titled “Stage 2: Make your first game”

Turn a short idea into a playable game. The guide covers every way to start; the tutorial shows one start to finish.

  1. Create your first game
  2. Tutorial, part 1: Make your first game
  3. Playtest your game

You can now turn a prompt into a playable game and playtest it in Studio.

Stage 3: Change it by asking

Section titled “Stage 3: Change it by asking”

Improve your game in plain words, and learn what Bali can and can’t do.

  1. Tutorial, part 2: Customize and polish a game
  2. Using Bali

You can now change visuals, add an enemy and tune difficulty by asking Bali.

Stage 4: Share it

Section titled “Stage 4: Share it”

Put your game online and keep a safe copy of every version.

  1. Tutorial, part 3: Publish your game
  2. Publish your game
  3. Version history

You can now share a playable link, and roll back a change that broke something.

Stage 5: Add to it

Section titled “Stage 5: Add to it”

Grow the game with a new mechanic, new art and your own files.

  1. Tutorial, part 4: Add collectibles and scoring
  2. Tutorial, part 5: Generate characters and art
  3. Tutorial, part 6: Upload your own art
  4. Create assets with Bali

You can now add a mechanic with its own art and sound, swap in a new hero, and use files you made yourself.

Stage 6: Work well with Bali

Section titled “Stage 6: Work well with Bali”

Pick up the habits that save time and Sparks.

  1. Write prompts Bali can act on
  2. Debug with Bali
  3. Sparks and usage

You can now size your requests well, report bugs clearly and keep your usage in check.

Where to go next

Section titled “Where to go next”