Play Stoplight Sprint online
Stoplight Sprint is a stop-and-go sprint: hold to run, release to stop, and race 300 metres to the finish line.
A traffic light cycles green, yellow, and red. Run hard on green, ease off on yellow, and freeze on red — keep moving on red and the watcher catches you.
Each catch costs a heart and knocks you 15 metres back. You have 3 hearts and 90 seconds to reach the finish.
How to control Stoplight Sprint
- Hold to run: Space, mouse button, or touch
- Release to stop
- M: mute
- P: pause
- Enter: start / restart
How to play
- 1
Hold Space, the mouse button, or your finger on the screen to run; release to stop.
- 2
Green means run, yellow means slow down, red means freeze. Keep moving on red and the watcher catches you, costing a heart and 15 metres.
- 3
You have 3 hearts and 90 seconds to sprint 300 metres to the finish line. Your best score is saved in your browser.
Tips for a better run
Release on yellow, not on red: yellow gives you a full warning beat to slow down, and a clean stop on red is never punished.
Do not hold through red hoping to sneak a few metres — one catch costs a heart plus 15 metres, far more than you gain.
On green, hold without fluttering: top speed builds up, so short taps waste the acceleration.
Your score is distance plus a time and heart bonus on a win, so a clean, fast run beats a reckless one.
Your best score is saved in your browser, so a no-catch win is the run to beat.
Frequently asked questions
How do I play?
Hold Space, the mouse button, or your finger on the screen to run. Release to stop. Green means run, yellow means slow down and get ready to stop, red means freeze — if you are still moving on red, the watcher catches you.
What does the yellow light mean?
Yellow is your warning: your top speed drops and you should release before the light turns red. If you release the moment the light turns red, you slow down fast enough to escape a catch — the watcher only grabs you if you keep moving for a moment on red.
What happens when I get caught?
Each catch costs one heart and knocks you 15 metres back, and you freeze for a second. Lose all 3 hearts, or run out of the 90-second clock, and the run ends.
Is Stoplight Sprint a copy of another game?
No. Stoplight Sprint is fully original: the red-light-green-light sprint rules, the runner Pip, the watcher, and all code, art, and audio are original works. It takes the general playground stop-and-go genre as inspiration but references no existing games, films, or franchises.
