Interview with MakeCode Arcade Game Maker
Posted on December 19th, 2025 by Jaqster
Interview from December, 2025
As a great way to close out 2025, we sat down with MakeCode game developer and Code Ninjas Sensei, Ethan Battaglia, to learn more about what it’s like learning and creating games with MakeCode Arcade.
Ethan’s very fun JetChamp game, was submitted as an entry in Code Ninja’s recent Champions Game Jam. You can see all the submissions here.
Ethan playing JetChamp at his Code Ninjas center
Tell us a little bit about JetChamp – what is the game about, and what is the game play like?
JetChamp is my submission to the Code Ninjas Champions game jam! It’s about how Yellow Bull (a fictional energy drink company) is looking for a new stunt artist. They decide to hold a jetpack competition to determine who becomes the stunt artist and earns the title of JetChamp!
The gameplay is full of timing-based challenges where the player must use their jetpack to fly at just the right time to pass each obstacle. There are five levels in total, with each level building off of the previous ones by introducing new and exciting game mechanics!
How did you come up with the idea for it?
When brainstorming ideas for the Champions game jam, an image of a podium with people at the base of it reaching for the top appeared in my mind. It was that sense of height difference - where everyone started at the ground - which inspired me to make a game where the player must keep flying higher.
What was your favorite part about building this game?
In “Foddian” games like Getting Over It and Jump King, you lose considerable progress if you make a mistake. This forces the player to plan their next move and execute it perfectly. So, once the player pushes past an obstacle, they feel immensely satisfied and relieved. Building these moments into the game by using clever tilemap design and checkpoints was easily the most enjoyable part of making this game.
What was the biggest challenge?
For me, the hardest part of the game was designing the art for the player. I needed the player to have a black outline to help with gameplay readability, but I also needed the player to be smaller than one tile, or 16x16 pixels! I went through three or four iterations and multiple hours of playtests until I was happy with the final design, and I fit it into 13x14 pixels! The final art for the player also influenced my storytelling in the intro cutscene to say that the world is inhabited by “calculator droids”.
How did you learn about MakeCode Arcade, and how did you build up your game development skills?
A while back at Code Ninjas, the curriculum was changed so that MakeCode Arcade was the primary platform. As a Sensei, I felt obligated to master it, so I started building barebones recreations of popular games in MakeCode Arcade, including Pac-Man, Agar.io, Minesweeper, and Just Shapes and Beats. While building these recreations, I also sprinkled some of my own games in, including these genres: platformer, time-based survival, incremental, and puzzle!
I’ve been making games ever since one of the earlier updates to Geometry Dash introduced the level editor. It allowed me to build custom levels and learn how to create a strong, cohesive experience from nothing.
Tell us a little bit about Code Ninjas and what you do there?
At Code Ninjas, kids (or Ninjas) learn how to code by starting with block coding in MakeCode Arcade and progressing to professional game engines like Unity and Godot. They practice their skills by building dozens of projects, answering interactive quizzes, and solving problems in example code. As a Code Ninjas Sensei, I:
1. 2.
- Teach the fundamental rules behind
- coding 5. 6. 7.
- Debug complex issues in Ninja-made
- games 10. 11. 12.
- Inspire Ninjas to build their dream
- games 15.
Tell us about Extra Life and what they do?
Extra Life is a fundraising program (run by Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals) where streamers raise money by holding gaming marathons. The streamer chooses a specific hospital that is part of Children’s Miracle Network, and schedules a marathon stream. All donations raised during this marathon go to the selected children’s hospital!
In October of 2025, Extra Life and Code Ninjas came together and created the Champions game jam where the winners each get $500USD donated to their local children’s hospital!
Any advice you have for aspiring game developers?
If you are ever struggling with coming up with ideas for a game to make, it’s okay with using some of your favorite games as a jumping-off point. A lot of people get stressed out trying to make every single aspect of their game “original”, when really all a game needs to be is FUN! The best games are often the ones that take existing ideas and make them better.
Huge thanks to Ethan for helping inspire new generations of game makers at Code Ninjas, and for making a super fun JetChamp game with MakeCode Arcade!
Happy Making and Coding!
The MakeCode Team