The full guide from my reel: the download, how the game works, and a copy-paste prompt to make your own game.

I have a MacBook, and I couldn’t find enough good games for it. A lot of what’s there is paid. So I built my own with Claude: a game I can play between work and not get addicted to, because a session is only 5 minutes. It’s called Nightlight, it’s free, and for now it’s Mac only.

Part 1: Play Nightlight

Download it here: kevinsingh.me/nightlight. It’s free, with no account and no ads.

You’re a tiny flame in a dark forest, and you have to survive 5 minutes until dawn. You only move: the flame shoots by itself. Your light is also your health, so as it drops, you can see less of what’s coming. Kill shadows, collect their embers to get your light back, and level up.

1. Open the downloaded file and drag Nightlight into Applications.
2. Open it. The first time, your Mac will warn you, because I haven’t paid for Apple’s developer program.
3. On macOS 15 or newer: go to System Settings, then Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway.
   On macOS 14 or older: right-click the app and choose Open.
4. Move with WASD or the arrow keys, or just hold the mouse.

Part 2: Build your own game

What you need

• A Mac. This guide is written for Mac, because that’s what I build on.
• A paid Claude plan. The free plan doesn’t include Claude Code. The cheapest plan that does is Pro: $20 a month, or $17 a month billed yearly (claude.com/pricing, checked 3 Nov 2026). Prices in your country may differ.
• No coding. You describe the game and test it; Claude writes the code. You will still need patience: a good game takes many rounds of “play it, say what’s wrong”.

Set up Claude Code

1. Download the Claude desktop app for Mac from Anthropic’s Claude Code page and sign in.
2. Click the Code tab. The app includes Claude Code, so there’s nothing else to install.
3. Pick a folder to work in, such as a new Projects folder on your Desktop.
4. Paste the prompt below and fill in your idea.

Prefer the terminal? Run this, open a new terminal window, then type claude.

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

The prompt (copy and paste)

Help me build a small, complete 2D game that runs natively on my Mac. I am not a programmer, so make the technical decisions yourself, run every command yourself, and explain things in plain English.

My game idea: [DESCRIBE IT IN 2-3 LINES: who you play, what you do, how you lose, how long one session should last]

How to build it:

- Use Swift and SpriteKit, with no third-party code.

- Draw all the art and generate all the sounds with code, so there are no image or audio files to find or license.

- Make a new folder for the game in my Desktop/Projects folder, and keep everything inside it.

- If a tool is missing, install it yourself where you can. Apple's free Command Line Tools are enough, so never ask me to install full Xcode. Only stop for me when my Mac password or a pop-up needs me, and tell me exactly what to do. Claude Code may also ask permission to run commands; tell me that's normal and which option to choose.

- Add one command that builds a double-clickable .app, so I can open the game like any other Mac app.

- Add a --selftest mode that plays through every screen with scripted input and reports pass or fail, and use it to check your own work. Don't tell me something works until you have run it.

How to work with me:

1. First ask me at most 3 questions about the idea, then give me a short plan in plain English.

2. Build the smallest version I can really play: moving, the main thing you do in the game, one enemy, losing, and restarting. Sound can wait. Open the .app once yourself to confirm the window appears, then stop and tell me how to open it.

3. After I play it, we add one thing at a time, and I decide what comes next.

A good idea to start with is small: one character, one thing to do, one way to lose. “You play a bee collecting pollen, spiders chase you, one session is 3 minutes” is plenty. I tested this prompt with exactly that idea: Claude hit two errors, fixed them itself, and ended with a game that passed its self-test.

8 follow-up prompts, in the order I’d use them

1. Fix the feel

Movement feels [slow / floaty / stiff]. Make it feel better, then tell me exactly what you changed so I can compare.

2. Make it satisfying

Make hits and pickups feel good: small screen shake, particles, a short sound and a flash. Keep it light and don't slow the game down.

3. Add sound

Now add sound effects and a quiet music loop, all generated by code, plus a mute button.

4. Tune the difficulty

The game is too [easy / hard]. Write a test bot that plays many full games with no window and reports how long it survives. Use it to tune the difficulty, and show me the numbers before and after.

5. Add upgrades

Every level, pause the game and offer 3 upgrade cards to choose from. Start with 5 upgrades that change how I play, not just bigger numbers.

6. Save progress

Save my best score and a currency I earn each run, and add a small shop of permanent upgrades. Make sure adding new things later can never wipe an old save.

7. Get unstuck

This is broken: [what you did, what you expected, what happened]. Find the real cause before changing anything, fix it, then prove it with --selftest.

8. Share it

Package the game as a .dmg for both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, and tell me exactly what a friend will see when they open it.

Tip: ask for one change at a time and play after each one. Your own opinion on how it feels is the part Claude can’t do for you.

What will probably trip you up

• Permission questions. Claude Code asks before it runs commands or changes files. That’s normal. Read what it wants to do, and say no if something looks wrong.
• Apple’s tools. The first time, your Mac may ask you to install Apple’s free Command Line Tools. Accept it and wait for it to finish. You don’t need the much bigger Xcode app.
• Sharing with friends. A game you build this way shows the same security warning on other Macs as Part 1. Removing it needs Apple’s paid developer program.
• Your usage limit. Long sessions use up your plan’s limit. If you hit it, wait for it to reset and carry on.

Before you rely on it

• Claude can be wrong and can say something works when it doesn’t. That’s why the prompt demands a self-test. Always play the game yourself too.
• The prompt is a starting point, and results will differ from game to game. I tested it on one small idea, on one Mac that already had Apple’s tools installed.
• Only use art, music and characters you have the right to use. Asking for everything to be generated by code avoids most of that problem.

Sources

• Anthropic: Claude Code overview (checked 3 Nov 2026). Install options and the desktop app.
• Anthropic: Claude pricing (checked 3 Nov 2026). Which plans include Claude Code.

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