Real World: a top-down open world in west Austin

What is Real World?

Real World is a bright, top-down open world you play right in your browser, and its first city is Austin, Texas. Every street, house, pool, dock and park in west Austin is built in sharp 2.5D from real map data, down to each house's roof colour, pool and trees: Clarksville, Old West Austin, Tarrytown, Deep Eddy, Pemberton Heights, Bryker Woods and the shores of Lake Austin and Lady Bird Lake, from N Lamar Blvd west to the water and from the river north to W 35th St and Mount Bonnell.

You start out on foot. Walk up to any house to see its address and its card, hop on a free share bike, take a delivery or taxi job, or race a timed sprint down Lake Austin Blvd. Every house is a property: claim one nobody owns for 100 coins, list it for sale at any price, or make an offer on someone else's. Lakefront lots come with a private dock on the lake.

Real World uses your Rocket Games coins, the same ones you earn by playing every game on the site. Save up for a car at Bright Lane Motors on N Lamar (from 5,000 coins for a city hatch to 150,000 for a hypercar) or a boat at the Bluewake Boat Shop on Lake Austin. Park in your garage to keep it safe: a car left unlocked on the driveway can be taken by another player. You can see everyone else in the city, chat, and add friends.

How to play Real World

1. Walk with W or the up arrow: you walk the way you're facing, A and D (or left and right) turn you (tap for a small turn, hold to swing round), S steps back, and Shift runs. Walking along a street, even a diagonal one, you follow it and keep to the sidewalk with just Up held. Prefer each key to walk that way on the screen? Choose Screen directions in Settings. On a phone, put your left thumb anywhere on the left of the screen and slide it any way you want to go, or tap a street to walk there. A gamepad's left stick works too.
2. Press E (or the E button) to get in and out of vehicles, to ride a free share bike from a dock, and to enter a shop. Walk onto a lot, or click or tap any house, to open its property card.
3. Driving: W or up accelerates, S or down brakes and reverses, A and D steer. Hold Space (or Drift) for the handbrake and slide round corners; every car class handles differently, from the planted city hatch to the twitchy hypercar.
4. The city is alive: cars obey the lights and stop signs, people walk the sidewalks. Take a car that isn't yours (E next to a stopped one) or drive like a menace and the stars of heat bring the city patrol: stay out of sight to lose them, or get caught and pay a small fine in coins (never more than you have). Patchwork Garage on N Lamar fixes dents for coins. H horn, L lights, R radio.
5. Press M or tap the minimap for the big map. Type an address like 1500 Enfield Rd to find it and get a route that follows the streets.
6. Claim a property nobody owns for 100 coins. On your own property card you can list it for any price; on someone else's you can buy it at its listed price or make an offer. An offer holds your coins until the owner accepts (they get them) or declines (you get them back).
7. Park your car at home: in the garage it's always safe and locked; on the driveway choose locked or unlocked. Press F next to a car to lock or unlock it. Unlocked cars left outside can be taken by other players.
8. Open Jobs (J) for deliveries, taxi rides and sprints. Each finished job is a round on Rocket Games and earns coins like any game round.

Real World tips and strategy

• Zoom right in (mouse wheel, pinch, or Q and Z) to see house numbers on every roof; zoom out to see the whole neighbourhood.
• The handbrake drift is fastest on wide corners: tap Space, steer into the turn, then counter-steer to hold the slide.
• Lakefront lots along Lake Austin and the river have their own docks. Buy a boat at the marina and tie it up at home.
• Always lock up. Cars parked unlocked on a driveway or the street can be taken, and then they belong to the player who took them. A garage is the only place nothing can happen.
• The Lake Austin Blvd Dash starts at Deep Eddy. Learn the bends and you'll climb the sprint leaderboard.
• Make friends with people you meet: friends can message each other, and you can find them on the map.

West Austin, house by house

The map is built from OpenStreetMap, the free map of the world made by volunteers: building footprints, addresses, roads with their lanes, parks, pools, docks and the lakes. Each building is drawn from its real footprint with a roof to match its type: hip roofs on houses, flat roofs with AC units on apartments and shops, solar panels here and there. Lots are worked out from the houses and streets around them.

Real World only shows addresses and the shapes of buildings. It never shows who lives anywhere, and owning a place in the game means nothing in real life.

Cars, bikes and boats

Twelve fictional cars and bikes, from the Pip City Hatch and the Zephyr 650 motorbike to the Riverline GT, the Solstice V8 and the Bluebonnet Hyper, and four boats from a little skiff to the Dart Lake Racer. Each class has its own speed, pickup, grip and drift. Share bikes, delivery scooters and taxi cabs are free to use.

Playing with other people

Everyone in the same part of Austin sees each other: on foot, in cars and on boats. Signed-up players can type in chat (it's filtered, and you can mute, block or report anyone); guests can use quick phrases and emotes. Send friend requests, message your friends, and see who's online.

Real World FAQ