Building Town controls: keyboard, controller, touch
You play Building Town with a keyboard and mouse, with a game controller, or with buttons on a touch screen. Every machine has two modes: Drive moves the whole machine, and Work moves its tool, like the bucket, the crane hook or the forks. F (X on a controller) switches between them.
The game shows the next key or button in front of the hint line, and the matching button on the screen gets an outline. It changes when you change device. In the game, Pause → Controls shows a short list of all controls.
Drive and Work: the big idea
- Drive mode: the machine rolls forward and back and steers. The tool stays still.
- Work mode: the machine stands still with its brake on. Now the same keys move the tool.
When you switch to Work, the parking brake goes on by itself. When you switch to Drive, it comes off. A dumper with its bed raised, or a crane holding the roof, can't switch to Drive. Lower the bed or set the roof down first.
Keyboard controls
| What | Key |
|---|---|
| Drive forward / reverse (Drive) | W / S |
| Steer while moving (Drive) | A / D |
| Reach out / in (Work) | W / S |
| Swing left / right (Work) | A / D |
| Raise / lower the bucket, bed, blade, forks or crane hook | I / K |
| Curl / tip the bucket | J / L |
| Crane: boom height up / down | J / L |
| Concrete mixer: Mix / Pour | J / L |
| Switch between Drive and Work | F |
| Parking brake, crane attach / release, roller vibration, telehandler pick up / release | E |
| Next machine | Q |
| Tools & machines menu | Tab |
| Jobs board | M |
| Follow machine (camera back on your machine) | C |
| Pause | Esc |
| Slow, careful tool moves | Hold Shift |
| Look left / right | ← / → |
| Zoom in / out | = / − |
| Camera views: The neighbourhood, The garden, The workshop, The crossing | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
With a mouse you can also click every button on the screen, drag the town to look around and use the mouse wheel to zoom.
Controller controls
Building Town works with an Xbox-style controller, or any controller your browser reads as a standard gamepad.
| What | Controller |
|---|---|
| Drive forward / reverse | RT / LT |
| Steer | Left stick left / right |
| Swing and reach (Work) | Left stick |
| Raise / lower the tool (Work) | Right stick up / down |
| Curl / tip the bucket (Work) | Right stick left / right |
| Crane: hoist and boom height (Work) | Right stick |
| Switch between Drive and Work | X |
| Parking brake, attach / release, vibration, pick up / release | A |
| Next machine | Y |
| Tools & machines menu | View |
| Jobs board | RB |
| Follow machine | B |
| Pause | Start |
| Slow, careful tool moves | Hold LB |
After you switch mode or close a menu, let go of the sticks for a moment. The game waits until the sticks are back in the middle, so the machine never jumps.
Touch controls on a phone or tablet
Turn your phone or tablet sideways: the game is played in landscape. Held upright, it pauses and says Turn your phone sideways to explore.
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Jobs · coins | Opens the Jobs board. Shows your coins. |
| Machine button, like Backhoe · Drive ▾ | Opens Tools & machines: choose a machine, change the camera, recover a machine. |
| Drive or Work | Switches mode. |
| Parking brake | Brake on or off (in Drive). |
| Attach / release | Crane: hook or let go of the roof. |
| Vibration on / off | Road roller (in Work). |
| Pick up / release | Telehandler: take or set down the pallet (in Work). |
| Pause | Pauses the game. |
| Slow controls | Makes tool moves slow and careful, like holding Shift. |
The big buttons at the sides change with the mode and the machine. Hold them down; let go to stop.
| Mode or machine | Left buttons | Right buttons |
|---|---|---|
| Drive | Drive: Forward, Reverse, Left, Right | none |
| Work: backhoe, excavator, wheel loader | Swing / Reach: Left, Right, Out, In | Bucket: Up, Down, Curl, Tip |
| Work: crane | Swing / Reach: Left, Right, Out, In | Hoist: Up, Down, Boom height +, Boom height − |
| Work: dumper | none | Tip bed: Up, Down |
| Work: bulldozer | none | Blade: Up, Down |
| Work: concrete mixer | none | Concrete: Mix, Pour |
| Work: telehandler | Reach: Out, In | Forks: Up, Down |
| Work: road roller | none | none (use Vibration on / off) |
Hold one button at a time: it is easier to see what each one does. Drag the town with a finger to look around, and pinch to zoom.
Street project controls
In the Herrhagen street projects and on your own street the machine follows the marked line by itself. You only drive and use the tool.
| What | Keyboard | Controller | Touch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive forward / reverse along the street | W / S | RT / LT | Forward / Reverse |
| Use the tool, hand over, inspect | E | A | The big tool button |
| Street projects card | M or Tab | RB or View | The town button at the top |
| Slow driving | Hold Shift | Hold LB | none |
The Tools & machines menu
Tab, View or the machine button opens Tools & machines. It has:
- Jobs: the Jobs board.
- One button for each machine you can use now. The machine the hint wants is marked.
- Follow machine: the camera goes back to your machine.
- The neighbourhood, The garden, The workshop, The crossing: four fixed camera views.
- Look left, Look right, Zoom in, Zoom out.
- Recover machine: puts the machine back at its starting spot. Its load stays on board.
- Resume: back to work.
Settings
Pause the game and choose Settings. You can change:
- Volume, Music and Sound effects, plus a Sound on/off switch.
- Moving effects: Like my device, Calm or Full.
- Graphics: Auto, Low or High. On Auto, a slow device gets a simpler picture by itself.
- Language: nine languages. The words change right away and your game goes on.
See also
- Your first job, step by step: the controls in action.
- All nine machines: what each tool does.
- Tips for new builders: common control mistakes and fixes.
- Play Building Town and try them out.
