Building a Christmas Flight Game with Babylon.js

Introduction

What's more festive than Santa flying a plane through snowy mountains? In this project, I created a 3D holiday game where players control Santa's altitude to collect presents while following a winding path. The twist? No complex controls—just one mouse click to ascend. Run out of fuel or crash into the terrain, and it's game over!

Project Overview

The Concept

A minimalist holiday game where:

• The plane auto-moves along a spline path
• Players click to ascend (fuel drains while climbing)
• Collect floating presents to refuel
• Collision = crash; fuel depletion = game over

Tech Stack

• Babylon.js (3D engine)
• Custom Catmull-Rom spline editor (for path design)
• Webflow (UI design, exported to HTML)
• Blender (3D models by a collaborator)
• ShaderToy-inspired skybox (optimized for mobile)

Development Process

1. Catmull-Rom Spline Foundation

The smooth flight path backbone using Babylon.js's built-in spline system:

• Creates natural curves through control points
• Automatically handles interpolation
• Perfect for predefined flight paths

const spline = new BABYLON.CatmullRomSpline3D([
  new BABYLON.Vector3(0, 10, 0),
  new BABYLON.Vector3(10, 5, 10),
  // Additional points...
]);

2. Flappy Bird-Style Controls

Simplified physics for responsive gameplay:

• Auto-advance: Constant movement along spline
• Click impulse: Immediate upward velocity
• Fake gravity: Continuous downward pull

// Core flight mechanics
let verticalVelocity = 0;
const GRAVITY = -0.05;
const CLICK_IMPULSE = 0.3;

scene.onPointerDown = () => {
  if (fuel > 0) {
    verticalVelocity = CLICK_IMPULSE;
    fuel -= FUEL_COST;
  }
};

function update() {
  verticalVelocity += GRAVITY * deltaTime;
  plane.position.y += verticalVelocity;
}

3. Visual Spline Editor

Built a custom tool to accelerate level design:

• Click-to-place control points in 3D space
• Real-time curve preview
• Adjust point height and spacing
• Export to Babylon.js format with one click

4. Collision & Fuel System

Using Babylon's intersection system:

// Present collection
meshes.forEach(present => {
  if (plane.intersectsMesh(present)) {
    fuel += PRESENT_FUEL_VALUE;
    present.dispose();
    updateFuelUI();
  }
});

// Ground collision
if (plane.intersectsMesh(ground)) {
  triggerGameOver();
}

5. Visual Effects

const snow = new BABYLON.ParticleSystem("snow", 1500, scene);
snow.particleTexture = new BABYLON.Texture("flakes.png", scene);
snow.minSize = 0.1;
snow.maxSize = 0.4;
snow.gravity = new BABYLON.Vector3(0, -0.5, 0);

// Optimizations:
#define STEPS 32  // Reduced from 64
// Removed ground reflections
// Simplified color palette

6. Final Balancing

Challenges & Solutions

Results & Takeaways

Conclusion

This project demonstrated how strategic simplifications can create compelling gameplay. Key takeaways:

• Custom tools dramatically improve workflow efficiency
• Lightweight systems often outperform full physics engines for specific use cases
• Mobile optimization requires careful balancing of visual fidelity and performance