How should I go about randomizing levels in a “runner” game?

Question

I'm working on a runner type of game (basically it's a never ending run through hordes of enemies and platforms and whatnot). 2d platformer view.

Should I random a bit of map every now and then? Few screens or 30 screens? And what about platforms and ground to make the whole thing "doable". Can I find any resources on that subject?

Answer 1

If you look at the way something like Jetpack joyride works, it has sections within each level that are pre-prepared, for example formations of groups of coins. There are a finite number of configurations that are added randomly in random positions. The enemies and bonus pickups are spawned in the same way. This is probably the simplest method and you could tune the probabilities as the game progresses to increase the difficulty. Playtesting should dictate the best settings.