Python / Pygame Tutorial 6 - Keyboard Events

This is the next tutorial in my Python / Pygame series. In this video we look at how to move an object around on the screen using the arrow keys on the keyboard. This should be the start of a cool game we will start to make next tutorial! Please subscribe if you like the videos.

Download this code:

Code:
import pygame

black = (0,0,0)
white=(255,255,255)

x,y=0,0

moveX,moveY=0,0

gameLoop=True
while gameLoop:

gameLoop=False

moveX = -5

moveX = 5

moveY = -5

moveY = 5

moveX=0

moveX=0

moveY=0

moveY=0

x+=moveX
y+=moveY

[AzamFahmy]

For those who dont understand KEYDOWN and the KEYUP events, KEYDOWN is when you press down a key in your keyboard and KEYUP is when you lift your finger from the keyboard. Hope this helped..Like it so others can see as well :D

[yothazme]

Thank you SO MUCH. You are seriously brilliant. I got stuck trying to make my char. move, and couldn't figure out how to keep the key pressed down. This is exactly what I needed. Thank you much. Really.

[basselsak]

do you know that this video changed my whole life !!
thanks man u r the best !

[Animations]

It is shorthand for x = x + moveX. This basically means that you are taking the value of x, adding on the value of moveX, and assigning the result to x. Hope this helps.

[geissonrodrigues]

Suggestion:

x+=moveX
y+=moveY
moveX =0
moveY=0

That way you don't need the KEYUP events to zero moveX and moveY...

[DGDG]

you can also minimize code with only define movX and movY together to 0 when pygame.event is happening directly... and catch key.get_pressed() function to get hold key pressed for 'loop moving' (inside the while loop, but outside the event loop)

[SotraEngine]

just to mention, you could also specify the colours in the object

[jeffmarcus]

Hello! you do this in a very long way! A much easier way to do this would be to use pygame.key.get_pressed()

here is an example

    key = pygame.key.get_pressed()
    if key[pygame.K_LEFT]:
        x = x-10
    if key[pygame.K_RIGHT]:
        x = x+10
    if key[pygame.K_UP]:
        y = y-10
    if key[pygame.K_DOWN]:
        y = y+10
what happens here is if the key is being press you move however much you specify. instead of having to do keydown and keyup you can just use this!

[StianTutorials]

When is next vid out, this is very helpful!

[obwonkonobe]

Cherl, Try making the directory that is in the veriable trace back all the way back to your c drive.

[Animations]

Probably sometime during this week. Sorry that I haven't been making these tutorials for so long.

[Animations]

What do you mean by solid objects? Do you mean the objects cannot go inside other objects? If so, that is quite complicated, but I will probably cover it in a future tutorial.

[mariaendres]

thank you so much!!! this was so helpful...

[Eliteruler]

Also, Great Tutorials! It really helped in understanding pygame.

[trico]

ty for the tutorials, hopefully you keep with it!

[ghostbatter]

Thanks very much. This video helped me alot

[Animations]

Instead of " if (event.key==pygame.K_LEFT): ", do " if (event.key==pygame.K_a): " and the same for the different keys, e.g. K_RIGHT would be K_d. Hope this helps!

[robhobbo]

I'm a bit new to Python but it strikes me that if you insert ( at the beginning of the for loop ) the bit indicated:

for event in pygame.event.get():
moveX, MoveY = 0, 0 # This is the bit I'm talking about

you don't need the KEYUP section. Having said that I wanted to look at a video that showed me how to use KEYUP and yours provided me with what I needed. Thank you.
Also I tried using this without setting up the window cos I just wanted to print out the key values. It doesn't work without setting up the window. It had me puzzled for a while.

[Eliteruler]

I cant get the rectangle to move, I typed the code exactly as you have it written. Everything loads fine, but the rectangle does not move.

[Eliteruler]

I FIGURED OUT WHAT WAS WRONG..I typed event.type instead of event.key in the nested if statements so it was not registering my key presses.