Happy Wheels is a physics-based ragdoll game by Jim Bonacci, published by Fancy Force under the Totaljerkface name. Players steer a character on a vehicle through obstacle-filled levels. A physics engine calculates every crash, fall and collision, so the rider can lose limbs, be thrown off or break apart. Happy Wheels runs in a web browser at Totaljerkface.com, including mobile browsers, and is also available on Steam. The browser version is free and supported by advertising.
Riders and their vehicles
Each Happy Wheels character is a jointed body attached to a vehicle, and the two can separate. The character select screen includes Irresponsible Dad, Segway Guy, Helicopter Man, Pogostick Man, Wheelchair Guy, Lawnmower Man, Santa Claus, Moped Couple, Explorer Guy, Irresponsible Mom and Effective Shopper. Some carry a passenger, such as the child riding with Irresponsible Dad or the second rider on the Moped Couple’s scooter. The same physics throws both the passenger and the driver around.
Controls change with the vehicle. Pogostick Man, for example, moves forward and backward in small hops with the up and down keys. He makes a big jump while the player holds the space bar, stands upright with Shift and crouches with Ctrl. His joints are stronger than other characters’ while he is on the stick, which lets him survive large jumps. Once ejected, he becomes as fragile as everyone else.
After ejecting, the character grabs onto objects for as long as the player holds the space bar. Segway Guy and Effective Shopper can grab their vehicle’s handles and climb back on.
How a level is won
Levels consist of physics objects: platforms, ramps, moving parts, breakable items and hazards such as harpoon guns and arrow guns. They also include boost panels that launch the vehicle. A creator can also set up a level with collectible tokens. When a level uses tokens, collecting all of them completes it. This lets a creator force players along a specific route.
The physics simulation runs at 30 steps per second. A setting lets the browser version draw the screen at an interpolated 60 frames per second. However, some heavier levels slow down at that rate.
Featured levels, browsing and replays
Happy Wheels offers a set of featured levels alongside a large library of user-made ones. The featured levels menu includes an arrow that opens other levels by the same featured authors. The general level browser searches by level name or author, and players can rate and favorite the levels they play.
Runs can be saved as replays and viewed in a separate replay browser. Replays are also kept as the record of top runs on a level. Any level or replay can be opened directly by pasting its URL into the Load level/replay option on the main menu.
The Happy Wheels level editor
Players can build their own levels in the built-in editor. While logged in to a Totaljerkface account, they can save and publish them to the shared browser. Saving and publishing are separate, so a level can stay private until it is ready. A counter shows how many shapes are left before the level reaches its object limit.
Shapes, groups and characters
Basic shapes can be resized, made transparent and moved forward or backward in the drawing order with Ctrl+Up and Ctrl+Down. Circles can have a center cutout to look like spoked wheels, although the cutout is only visual. Objects can be grouped, and double-clicking a group opens it for editing in place. Chains build rope-like structures that snap under strain, and text can be placed using the game’s fonts.
Non-player characters can be added as physics objects that react to the level. Double-clicking one lets players drag its limbs into a pose. A hold-pose option keeps that posture during play. A debug draw mode shows every physics shape and joint while a level is being tested.
Triggers and scripted events
Triggers make a level react to the player. Each trigger has a setting for what activates it, and one option makes it respond to a mouse click. Each trigger can run several actions on an object, such as switching a harpoon gun on or off, firing it, fixing or releasing a group, or deleting shapes. Triggers can also start, enable or disable other triggers, and a repeat setting loops their actions. Harpoon guns have additional modes: a fixed-angle mode that fires along one line when a character crosses it, and a trigger-only mode. A colored light shows which mode is active. Boost panels have adjustable power.
Community rules for uploads
Published levels go into a moderated public pool. Moderators remove clones of other creators’ work, reposts of popular levels with a name or message added, and levels that promise hidden rewards for rating them a certain way. Rating a level never unlocks anything in the game.
