Controls and smooth performance

By the VectoFly team · Updated 11 November 2026

VectoFly was designed for touch first, but it plays well with a mouse or keyboard too. This guide explains each control scheme and what to do if the game feels slow on an older device.

Touch (phones and tablets)

Put a thumb anywhere on the screen and slide up or down. The plane moves by the amount you slide, not to where your finger is, so there is no jump when you touch down and your thumb never covers the plane. Sliding left or right changes your speed slightly. It works in portrait and in landscape.

Rest your thumb in a comfortable spot, such as the lower corner, and make small slides. Large arm movements are slower and less accurate.
Lift and re-touch whenever you reach the edge of your thumb’s range. Because movement is relative, you can reset your grip at any time.
In the menu you can switch “Vibrate” on or off. It gives you a small buzz when you are hit or earn a bonus.

Mouse

The plane follows the pointer. Move up for height and left or right for speed. Keep the pointer inside the game area, because a fast flick to the edge is the most common cause of a mistake on desktop.

Keyboard

Key	Action
Arrow keys or W A S D	Steer
Space	Start a flight
P	Pause
M	Mute

The game adapts to your screen

On small or narrow screens VectoFly changes its camera and slows its spawns, so you get the same reaction time as on a big monitor, and obstacles appear larger. Scoring is not affected by this, so a phone score and a desktop score are fully comparable.

Sound and music

Music and sound effects can be switched on and off in the menu, and the M key mutes everything at once. Sound is useful, not essential: all warnings are also shown visually.

If the game feels slow

VectoFly draws real 3D graphics in your browser with WebGL, so it needs a little graphics power. If you see stutter:

Switch on “Low graphics” in the menu. It turns off shadows and lowers the picture sharpness, which helps a lot on slow phones.
Close other tabs and apps. Browsers share memory between tabs, and video or other games are heavy.
Update your browser. A current version of Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari has the best WebGL support.
Turn on hardware acceleration. In your browser’s settings, look for “use hardware acceleration when available” and enable it, then restart the browser.
Turn off battery saver. Power-saving modes often lower the frame rate on laptops and phones.
Let the device cool. A hot phone slows itself down. Take a short break.
Reload the page. A fresh start clears memory left over from a long session.

The game’s own clock also stops when the frame rate falls very low, so a struggling device does not make runs unfair, but a smooth device is much more pleasant.

When you switch apps or tabs

If you switch tabs or the window loses focus during a flight, the game pauses, so an interruption does not cost you a run. Come back and resume when you are ready.

Your progress and your device

Coins, unlocked planes and maps, settings and personal bests are saved in your browser on this device. Using the same browser each time keeps them. Clearing site data or using a private window starts you from scratch. Your best score on the world leaderboard stays online.

Still having problems?

Email contact@vectofly.com with your device, browser and a short description, or use the “Report a bug / send feedback” link at the bottom of the menu. See also the FAQ.

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