The Magic Button: Make Your Island Respond!

Have you ever wanted to build a puzzle where pressing a button opens a secret door? Or maybe a game where a light turns on when you touch a switch? In Fortnite Creative, we use Verse code to make these things happen.

Today, we will build a simple "Magic Button." When a player steps on it or clicks it, a prop (like a box) will change color. It is like a magic trick that your code controls!

What You'll Learn

• How to place a Button Device in your island.
• What an Event is (it is like a notification bell).
• How to write a small script to change a prop’s color.
• How to test your creation and play your game.

How It Works

Think of a Button Device like a doorbell. When you press the button, it sends a signal. That signal is called an Event. An event is just a message that says, "Hey! Someone pressed me!"

In Verse, we write code to listen for that message. When the message arrives, our code tells another object (like a box) to do something. This is called interaction.

We will use three parts:

1. The Button: The thing the player touches.
2. The Box: The thing that changes.
3. The Code: The brain that connects them.

Let's Build It

Follow these steps to build your Magic Button.

Step 1: Place Your Devices

1. Open UEFN and create a new island.
2. Go to the Device menu.
3. Place a Button Device on the floor.
4. Place a Cube Prop (or any box) nearby.
5. Make sure both devices are enabled.

Step 2: Write the Code

We will write a script that listens for the button press. When the button is pressed, the box will turn green.

Copy this code into a new Verse file in your project.

# This is our main script. It connects the button to the box.
# We call this a "Script" because it gives instructions.

# First, we need to find our devices.
# We will look for them by their names in the editor.
my_button := ButtonDevice:Find("MyButton")
my_box := CubeProp:Find("MyBox")

# This function runs when the game starts.
Initialize <- (): void =>
    # We tell the button to watch for clicks.
    # When it clicks, it will run the "OnButtonPressed" function.
    my_button.InteractedWithEvent.Subscribe(OnButtonPressed)

# This function runs ONLY when the button is pressed.
OnButtonPressed <- (event): void =>
    # We find the box by its name.
    box_to_change := CubeProp:Find("MyBox")
    
    # If we found the box, let's change its color!
    if (box_to_change != None):
        # We set the color to bright green.
        box_to_change.SetColor(Color(0.0, 1.0, 0.0))
        
        # Optional: Print a message to the console to help us debug.
        Print("Button pressed! The box is now green.")

Step 3: Name Your Devices

This is the most important step! The code looks for devices by name.

1. Click on your Button Device in the editor.
2. In the Details panel, find the Name field.
3. Type exactly: MyButton
4. Click on your Cube Prop.
5. In the Details panel, find the Name field.
6. Type exactly: MyBox

Step 4: Test It!

1. Press Play in UEFN.
2. Walk up to the button.
3. Interact with it (click or step on it, depending on settings).
4. Watch the box turn green!

Try It Yourself

You did it! You made a device respond to a player. Now, can you make it do more?

Challenge: Try to make the box turn Red instead of Green. Or, try to make it turn Blue when you press it a second time.

Hint: Look at the SetColor line in the code. You can change the numbers inside the Color(...) brackets.

• Red is usually Color(1.0, 0.0, 0.0)
• Blue is usually Color(0.0, 0.0, 1.0)

Can you guess what happens if you set all numbers to 1.0? (Try it and see!)

Recap

• Button Devices send an Event when a player interacts with them.
• Verse code listens for these events using Subscribe.
• We use the device Name in the editor to find them in code.
• You can change properties like Color when an event happens.

Great job, coder! You have just built your first interactive system. Keep experimenting and building amazing islands!

References

• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/using-button-devices-in-fortnite-creative
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/uefn/tagged-lights-1-creating-the-algorithm-in-verse
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/tagged-lights-1-creating-the-algorithm-in-verse
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite-creative/using-button-devices-in-fortnite-creative
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/using-button-device-design-examples-in-fortnite-creative