The dino's jump feels simple, but there's a tiny physics engine underneath — and understanding it is a real scoring edge. We build runner physics for the games on this site, so here's the machinery in plain English.
Gravity plus one impulse
Each jump gives the dino a single upward kick (an impulse). From that instant, gravity pulls it down a little more every frame — which is why the jump traces a smooth arc: fast rise, a float at the top, accelerating fall. Nothing you press mid-air adds height; the arc is decided the moment you leave the ground.
What the arc means for your play
- No double jump. One impulse per takeoff — mashing the spacebar mid-air does nothing except wreck your rhythm.
- The arc has a fixed length. Jump too early and you land in front of the obstacle you meant to clear. At high speed, late beats early — the ground you cover per jump is constant, but obstacles arrive faster.
- The float at the top is your friend. The dino spends more time near the arc's peak than near the ground. Clearing tall cacti is about placing that peak over them.
Why speed changes everything
The world scrolls faster as you score, but gravity never changes — so your jump takes the same time while obstacles close in quicker. That shrinking margin is the entire difficulty curve; the numbers are in how fast the game gets.