How to Write a Game Prompt That Actually Works (Good vs Bad Examples)
What makes an AI game prompt work? We tested good and bad prompts in Flikk and show exactly what each one gave us, with a simple formula to copy.
In this article
- First, a free way to test any prompt
- Mistake 1: not saying what the player does
- Mistake 2: too vague to picture
- Mistake 3: everything at once
- Mistake 4: asking for something Flikk can't build
- Mistake 5: fuzzy edits
- A simple formula for a good game prompt
- Good vs bad game prompts: a cheat sheet
- Try it yourself
- FAQ
A good game prompt says what the player does. That's most of the secret. "A cat catches fish" is four words, and it's enough for a whole game. "A fun game" sounds like more, but it gives the AI nothing to build.
To show the difference, we typed good and bad prompts into Flikk, side by side, and compared what came back. Below are five common prompt mistakes, what each one gave us, and how to fix it. At the end, there's a simple formula you can copy.
Quick note: Flikk is our app. Every screenshot below is real, and every prompt is exactly what we typed, unless we say it's an example.
First, a free way to test any prompt
On Flikk, you type your idea in the Create tab, and the companion (the little green robot) answers with a game plan: a name, a quick sketch and the rules it understood. Getting a plan is free. You only spend Tokens when you tap Build it.
That makes the game plan the best way to check a prompt. Type it, read the plan, and if it's not what you pictured, tap Edit and try again. That's exactly how we tested every prompt in this guide.
Mistake 1: not saying what the player does
The bad prompt: "A fun game"
We switched to 3D and typed it. Flikk didn't make a game plan at all. Instead, a red line appeared above the text field: "Say what the player actually does, even roughly."
"Fun" is what you hope the game will be. It doesn't say what happens on the screen.
The good prompt: "A cat catches fish"
Four words, and one of them is the action. Flikk turned it into a full game plan: a cat sliding along a river, fish and hooks falling from above, three lives and a frenzy mode. We built it, and it became Hungry Cat Catch. (The whole story is in The Most Important Part of Game Design.)
The lesson: short is fine. A prompt without an action isn't.
Mistake 2: too vague to picture
The bad prompt: "A racing game"
This one has an action, so Flikk made a plan. It named the game Turbo Circuit and filled in everything else itself: you steer by dragging left or right, the car speeds up on its own, you hold a drift button through sharp turns to fill a nitro tank, race five rival cars across fifty tracks, and earn cash to upgrade your car.
That's not a bad game. But it's Flikk's racing game, not yours. With a vague prompt, the AI fills every gap with a safe, typical choice.
The good prompt: this time we said exactly what we wanted:
"A racing game where there is a wheel for steering in the bottom middle of the screen. Make the circuit wide enough for 3 cars side by side. Also add turrets on the cars that are fired with a button. If the player steers the wheel 120 degrees really fast, the car turns 180 degrees. The car accelerates on its own. And add a brake button"
The game plan came back as Spinfire Raceway, and the sketch already showed cars with turrets on a wide track:
Every detail made it into the rules:
| What we asked for | What the game plan says |
|---|---|
| A steering wheel in the bottom middle | "Bottom-center steering wheel steers your auto-accelerating car" |
| A wide circuit for 3 cars | "Tracks built three cars wide" |
| Turrets fired with a button | "Dedicated fire button unleashes turret rounds against competitors" |
| Turn the wheel 120° fast, the car turns 180° | "Rapidly turning the wheel 120 degrees snaps the car into an instant 180-degree turnaround" |
| A brake button | "Dedicated brake button helps drift corners and avoid crashes" |
The lesson: the details you leave out are the details the AI picks for you. If something matters to you, like the controls, say it.
Mistake 3: everything at once
The racing prompt was long, but it was all about one thing: how the car drives and fights. Things get harder when one request mixes several different jobs.
For our trivia game, Retro Quiz Show, we put a new studio look, lighting, confetti, bigger emoji clues and a whole new feature into a single edit. Flikk built most of it, but its plan said: "Specific podium colors and lighting effects are determined by the engine's visual styling, so they were left out."
That's fair, and Flikk told us before we spent anything. But with five changes in one request, it's harder to check what you got. (See every step in How to Make Your Own Trivia Game.)
The fix: start with one idea that's fun on its own. Build it, play it, then add the next thing with Make Edits. Each edit takes about 5 minutes.
Mistake 4: asking for something Flikk can't build
Some requests can't work on Flikk yet: tilting the phone to steer, landscape games, in-game shops. When we asked Make Edits to switch a game to tilt controls, Flikk said so right away:
The fix: describe the feeling you want with something Flikk can build. Instead of tilt controls, ask for a floating joystick, swipes or drag-to-move. Every Flikk game is portrait, so design for a tall screen. Our Mobile Game Glossary has the words for every kind of touch control.
Mistake 5: fuzzy edits
Prompts don't stop after the first build. Edits are prompts too, and the same rule applies: say what you see and what you want.
A fuzzy edit (an example, not one we sent): "Make it better"
Better how? Flikk has to guess again.
A clear edit (the one we really sent): after an edit, the question board in our trivia game covered the score bar. We typed:
"The question board got wider and it covers the score board at the top. Please fix it so the points etc. can also be seen"
Flikk turned it into "Reposition and resize the question board to prevent it from overlapping the top scoreboard", and the fix worked. No technical words needed, just what's wrong and what should happen instead.
A simple formula for a good game prompt
Most good prompts answer three questions:
- What does the player do? Catch, jump, race, match, dodge, answer.
- Where, or with what? A cat by a river, a car on a city track, video game trivia.
- What's the twist? Turrets on the cars, a frenzy mode, an emoji bonus round.
Then, if it matters to you, add one or two of these:
- Controls: "a steering wheel at the bottom", "a floating joystick", "swipe to change lanes"
- Camera: "seen from above at an angle", "the camera follows behind the player"
- Look and mood: "a night-time game show studio", "dark red stormy light"
- Goal: "50 levels with stars", "an endless run for a high score"
Here's the formula in one sentence: "A [game type] where you [action] [where / with what], and [twist]." For example: "A 3D platformer where you jump across floating islands, and the islands sink a little every time you land." (That one's an example to try.)
Need words for controls, cameras or 3D looks? See our Mobile Game Glossary, the 3D Game Glossary and the Game Design Glossary.
Good vs bad game prompts: a cheat sheet
| Instead of this | Try this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "A fun game" | "A cat catches fish" | Says what the player does |
| "A racing game" | "A racing game with a steering wheel at the bottom and turrets you fire with a button" | Your details, not the AI's guesses |
| Five changes in one request | One change per edit | Easier to check what you got |
| "Tilt the phone to steer" | "A floating joystick to steer" | Flikk can build it |
| "Make it better" | "The board covers the score. Move it so I can see the points" | Says what's wrong and what you want |
Try it yourself
Open Flikk, tap Create, and type your idea: what the player does, where, and one twist. Read the game plan. If it's not what you pictured, tap Edit and change your words. It's free until you tap Build it. When the plan looks right, build it, and in about 15 minutes you'll be playing your game.
Flikk is free on iOS and Android, and making games is free to start.
Download Flikk on iOS · Download Flikk on Android
FAQ
How do I write a good prompt for an AI game?
Say what the player does, where it happens and one twist, like "a cat catches fish" or "a racing game with turrets on the cars". Add controls, camera or look only if they matter to you. Then check the game plan before you build.
How long should a game prompt be?
As long as it needs to be. Four words were enough for Hungry Cat Catch. A longer prompt helps when you want specific controls or features, because anything you don't mention, the AI decides for you.
What if the AI doesn't understand my prompt?
On Flikk, a prompt that's too vague gets a hint instead of a game plan: "Say what the player actually does, even roughly." If something can't be built, Flikk tells you before you spend anything. Rewrite your idea and try again.
Does it cost anything to try a prompt?
No. Getting a game plan on Flikk is free. Building the game costs 100 Tokens, and each edit after that costs 25 Tokens.
Can I change my game after it's built?
Yes. Open your game's page and use Make Edits to describe the change. An edit takes about 5 minutes, and only your own games can be edited.
