What is Three Lane Runner?
It is an endless runner seen from behind: a round robot runs down three lanes forever while you change lanes, jump and slide to get past what is coming. Hit something and you fall. You can keep running once, and the second fall ends the run.
Like Temple Run or Subway Surfers, the road meets at a vanishing point, so fences and signs start as tiny dots far away and grow as they rush toward you. The road, buildings, trees, sea, robot and coins are all drawn in code, and the sound effects are synthesized in the browser. You start at about 11 meters per second and speed up little by little, passing 25 meters per second on a long run.
How do I get past each obstacle?
Jump the low fences, slide under the high signs, and move to another lane for pillars and carts. Their looks change with each zone, but the way past stays the same.
| Obstacle | Looks like | How to pass |
|---|---|---|
| Low fence | Red striped barricade in the city, a fallen log in the forest, a blue striped hurdle on the beach | Jump over it or change lane |
| High sign | A board on two posts with arrows pointing down | Slide under it or change lane |
| Pillar | Concrete column, big tree trunk, stack of wooden crates | Change lane only |
| Cart | A canopy cart rolling toward you with blinking headlights | Change lane only, listen for the bell |
Obstacles come in rows, and every row keeps at least one lane free of pillars and carts. The gap between rows is always longer than the time it takes to move two lanes at the current speed, so if you look ahead there is always a way through.
What do the power ups do?
Run through a glowing bubble on the road to switch on a magnet, double coins, a shield or jump shoes. A ring under the score card shows the time left.
| Power up | Effect | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Magnet | Pulls in coins from the side lanes and ahead | 9 s |
| Coins x2 | Each coin counts as two, so it is worth double points | 10 s |
| Shield | Absorbs one hit and smashes the obstacle instead of you falling | 20 s or one hit |
| Jump shoes | Higher, longer jumps, high enough to clear a cart | 9 s |
How is the score counted?
Your score is 1 point per meter plus 10 points per coin. Following coin trails therefore matters much more than distance alone.
Coin trails usually lead toward a lane you can pass in the next row, arc over fences so you have to jump to get them all, and run low under signs. The result card shows the score, distance, coins and one of six ranks from First Steps to Legendary Runner, and your best score is saved in this browser. A distance banner pops up every 500 meters.
How do the zones change?
Every 700 meters the scenery moves from City Alley to Forest Trail to Beach Boardwalk, then back to the city. A gate with the zone name marks each change.
- City Alley: asphalt lined with colorful buildings, striped awnings and street lamps, with a skyline in the distance.
- Forest Trail: a dirt path between round trees, pointed pines and flowering bushes. The low obstacles are fallen logs.
- Beach Boardwalk: wooden planks with the sea sparkling on the right and palms and parasols on the sand to the left.
Does one fall end the run?
No. Once per run you get five seconds to press Keep running and pick up where you fell. There are no ads to watch.
When you continue, obstacles in the next 45 meters are cleared, you blink and cannot fall for 2.6 seconds, and your speed dips for a moment before returning over a few seconds. A second fall takes you to the results.
Tips for longer runs
- Watch the middle of the screen, not right in front of the robot. Find the open lane while the row is still far away and you rarely need a panicked two lane jump.
- Respect the cart headlights and bell. Carts drive toward you, so they arrive sooner than their distance suggests.
- Press down in the air to drop and slide at once. Use it when a sign comes right after a jump.
- Pressing up just before landing still jumps. An early press is kept and fires the moment you touch the ground.
- Run boldly while the shield is up. For those 20 seconds one mistake is free.
Controls
- Keyboard: left and right arrows or A D change lane, up arrow, W or Space jumps, down arrow or S slides. Enter starts.
- Phones and tablets: swipe left or right to change lane, up to jump, down to slide. A quick tap also jumps.
- Mouse: press and drag in a direction to swipe, click to jump.
Your best score and sound setting stay in this browser and are never sent to a server. Behind the title screen the robot runs a demo on its own.