# Boxcar Flyer

> Launch a homemade flying machine, crash it spectacularly, and upgrade it to go farther.

You start with a cardboard boxcar, a plank ramp and a bottle rocket. Roll down the ramp, tilt the nose, hit Boost and fly until it all comes crashing down: wheels flying, stars spinning, one slow-motion bonk. Every flight pays bolts. Spend them in the workshop on taller ramps, bigger wings, rockets, fuel tanks, balloons, propellers and parachutes, and unlock a bathtub, a shopping cart, a canoe, a hot-air couch and more. Fly past the town, the farms, the lake, the mountains and the clouds, all the way to the edge of space.

- Play: https://sidekickarcade.com/play/boxcar-flyer/ (in the browser, phone or computer, free, no sign-up)
- Neighborhood: [Zoom Lane](https://sidekickarcade.com/category/zoom/index.md)
- Controls: Tilt buttons and Boost, or W / S and Space
- Best on: portrait screens
- Coins for goals: 3 per 1 scenery bands, up to 15 a run

## How to play

1. Press Boost just as the Lip bar fills at the end of the ramp for a perfect launch.
2. Tilt the nose up to climb and glide, and down to dive for speed. Use the two tilt buttons on a phone, W and S or the arrow keys on a keyboard. Boost is the orange button, or Space. Let go and it glides on its own; hold a tilt until the Flip bar fills to do a flip.
3. Boost uses fuel, so save some for the sky. Pop balloons, fly through rings and bounce on clouds for more bolts. Dodge the birds.
4. Crash, collect your bolts, and spend them in the workshop on parts that fly you farther. There is a new daily flight every day.

## Tips

- Press Boost right when the ring closes at the end of the ramp. A perfect launch is a free speed boost.
- Save some fuel for later. Boosting while you climb turns into height, and height turns into distance when you glide.
- Fly through rings and bounce on clouds and blimps: they pay bolts and keep you up.
- Spend bolts on whatever helps most right now. Wings and rockets first, then fuel and a tougher frame.

## Questions

### Is it free?

Yes. It's free to play in your browser, with no download and no sign-up. Coins you earn are for fun and can never be bought.

### How do I steer?

Hold the up or down arrow button to tilt the nose, and hold Boost to fire the rocket. On a keyboard use W and S or the arrow keys, and Space for Boost. Every way turns the nose at the same speed.

### What are bolts?

The bolts you earn on each flight are this game's own cash for the workshop. They are separate from the site's coins and can't be bought.

### Is there a goal?

Plenty. Fly farther to reach the farms, the lake, the mountains, the clouds and the edge of space, unlock new rides, earn medals, and try the daily flight.

## Achievements

- **Rolling start** (bronze, 10 coins): Finish your first flight.
- **Hop, skip, crash** (bronze, 10 coins): Fly 50 m in one flight.
- **Perfect launch** (bronze, 10 coins): Press Boost right at the lip of the ramp.
- **Tinkerer** (bronze, 10 coins): Own 5 part upgrades.
- **Balloon popper** (bronze, 10 coins): Pop 10 balloons in total.
- **Farmland ahoy** (silver, 25 coins): Fly into the Farmland, 250 m from the ramp.
- **Flip out** (silver, 25 coins): Hold a tilt long enough to do a full flip in the air.
- **Garage party** (silver, 25 coins): Unlock 3 rides.
- **Softy** (silver, 25 coins): Fly at least 12 m up, then touch down gently with the nose level for a soft landing.
- **Lighthouse in sight** (silver, 25 coins): Fly all the way to the lighthouse.
- **Frequent flyer** (silver, 25 coins): Fly 50 flights.
- **Daily pilot** (silver, 25 coins): Beat the daily flight's target.
- **Secret achievement** (silver, 25 coins): Keep playing to find it.
- **Secret achievement** (silver, 25 coins): Keep playing to find it.
- **Secret achievement** (silver, 25 coins): Keep playing to find it.
- **Lake crosser** (gold, 60 coins): Fly across the whole lake.
- **Head in the clouds** (gold, 60 coins): Climb to the clouds, 800 m up.
- **Master tinkerer** (gold, 60 coins): Own 40 part upgrades.
- **Collector** (gold, 60 coins): Unlock 5 rides.
- **Medal rack** (gold, 60 coins): Earn 12 medals across your rides.
- **Ring master** (gold, 60 coins): Fly through 6 rings in one flight.
- **A week in the sky** (gold, 60 coins): Beat the daily flight 7 days in a row.
- **Edge of space** (gold, 60 coins): Fly into the Edge of Space, 6 km out.
- **Secret achievement** (gold, 60 coins): Keep playing to find it.
- **Orbit!** (diamond, 150 coins): Reach orbit: 12 km out and 2.5 km high in one flight. Earns the title "Orbit Pilot".
- **Everything maxed** (diamond, 150 coins): Max out all 10 parts. Earns the title "Master Builder".
- **Platinum garage** (diamond, 150 coins): Earn a Platinum medal in every ride. Earns the title "Medal Master".
- **Orbit in everything** (diamond, 150 coins): Take every ride to orbit. Earns the title "Skyfarer".
- **Round the world** (diamond, 150 coins): Fly 10,000 km in total. Earns the title "Long Hauler".
- **A thousand flights** (diamond, 150 coins): Fly 1,000 flights. Earns the title "Thousand-flight Ace".

## More to play

- [Bolt Alley](https://sidekickarcade.com/play/bolt-alley/index.md): Swipe between three lanes, jump, slide and sprint through town as the speed climbs. (Zoom Lane)
- [Puffin Flight](https://sidekickarcade.com/play/puffin-flight/index.md): Tap to flap through the gaps between the sea stacks and icebergs. (Arcade Alley)
- Paper Plane (coming soon): Glide a paper plane on the wind for as long as you can. (Arcade Alley)