Game States

Beginner games turn into if playing then ... elseif paused then ... soup. A tiny state machine fixes it — this is the same pattern in the Starter Template (StateMachine.lua, 61 lines).

Minimal version (no library)

local state = "title" -- "title" | "play" | "pause" | "over"
 
function love.update(dt)
  if state == "play" then
    updateGame(dt)
  end
end
 
function love.draw()
  local WIDTH, HEIGHT = love.graphics.getDimensions()
  if state == "title" then
    love.graphics.printf("Press ENTER", 0, HEIGHT / 2 - 10, WIDTH, "center")
  elseif state == "play" then
    drawGame()
  elseif state == "pause" then
    drawGame()
    love.graphics.printf("PAUSED", 0, HEIGHT / 2 - 10, WIDTH, "center")
  elseif state == "over" then
    love.graphics.printf(string.format("GAME OVER - press R"), 0, HEIGHT / 2 - 10, WIDTH, "center")
  end
end
 
function love.keypressed(key)
  if state == "title" and key == "return" then state = "play" end
  if state == "play" and key == "p" then state = "pause" end
  if state == "pause" and key == "p" then state = "play" end
  if state == "over" and key == "r" then resetGame() state = "play" end
end

Template version (one file per state)

Each state gets enter / update / draw / keypressed. The machine just forwards calls:

• BaseState.lua — empty interface
• TitleScreenState.lua — title
• PlayState.lua — gameplay
• StateMachine.lua — the switcher

Use the minimal version until you have 3+ states, then graduate.

When it breaks

Symptom	Fix
Input leaks between states (pause menu moves player)	Gate love.update per state like above; don’t run game logic when paused
Stuck on game-over	You forgot to reset score/positions in resetGame() before switching to play