Level Components

Map Components are what the player has to navigate through in order to complete levels in Geometry Dash. A combination of platforms, hazards, triggers, decorations and cosmetic effects form the design of levels.

Note: Mentions of tabs are in reference to those displayed by the Build tool of the level editor.

Platforms= Platforms are usually safe to make vertical contact with and travel over. Platforms consist of: blocks, located under the first tab and by default occupy one square unit; other platforms, located under the second tab and come in various shapes and sizes, and slopes, introduced in Update 1.8, located under the fourth tab and may allow the icon to travel at angles (horizontal movement speed remains constant). Some platforms are physical objects while others are decorative and must be used in combination with outlines to enable them a physical condition.

Update 1.3 was the first update to introduce new platform styles.

Update 1.4 introduced smaller scale platforms.

Certain platforms introduced in Update 1.6 have special properties, whose block and slope variants are located under the second tab.
 * Fading platforms will become increasingly transparent when the icon is in close proximity. Crashing will reveal all fading platforms on-screen. These are not included in the galleries below.
 * Destructible blocks will be destroyed in horizontal collisions and sometimes in vertical collisions, with no damage to the icon.

Update 1.7 introduced variants of the grid, tile, chipped, black and brick blocks that can be customised using colour channels. These are not included in the galleries below.

Update 1.8 introduced platforms that incorporate colour channel customisation with base styles.

Update 2.0 introduced a vast assortment of platforms, some of which are designed to be used in combination with each other. These are not included in the galleries below.

Slopes
Outlines= Outlines are platforms with no internal styling, located under the third tab. They may be used individually or in combination with decorative platforms to enable them a physical condition. Cornerpieces are decorative and may be used to fill in gaps left between certain outline arrangements.

Outlines of increased thickness were introduced in Update 2.0. These are not included in the galleries below.

Cornerpieces
Hazards= There are various types of hazards which will destroy the icon under any form of contact. Hazards consist of: spikes and pits, located under the fifth tab; animated monsters, introduced in Update 2.0 and located under the seventh tab, and rotating saw-blades, introduced in Update 1.4 and located under the eleventh tab. Although they are animated, the hitboxes for monsters and saw-blades remain static.

Update 1.4 introduced smaller scale hazards.

Certain hazards introduced in Update 1.6 have special properties.
 * Fading spikes and saw-blades will become increasingly transparent when the icon is in close proximity. Crashing will reveal all fading hazards on-screen. These are not included in the galleries below.
 * Fake spikes with black outlines will not destroy the icon and act like decorations.

Update 1.7 introduced spikes and saw-blades that can be customised using colour channels.

Saw-blades
3D components= Introduced in Update 1.9, 3D components are decorations appended onto platforms to enhance spatial perception of the environment. Outlines and surfaces with relative designs to platforms may be used together to achieve this purpose. Special= Under the seventh tab are special components that includes pads, rings, portals, collectibles, text and various animated components (these are mentioned on other sections of this page).

Pads and rings influence the direction of travel. Making contact with a pad will automatically execute its effect, while a ring requires a click/tap while a player is in range. They may be positioned so that they redirect the icon into a hazard, needing to be avoided in such instances.

Pads and rings also emit identically coloured pixel effects to themselves (with the exception of yellow rings, which emit white particles). They also cause an expanding circle effect when used which is also the same colour.

For information about portals, see Portals.

Trivia

 * Prior to their formal introduction, the yellow pad is encountered in The Seven Seas, the cyan pad in Back On Track and Polargeist, the magenta pad in Can't Let Go, and the magenta ring in Time Machine, as part of collecting secret coins.
 * The magenta pad, despite launching the icon a smaller height, is of a larger size than the yellow pad.
 * The green ring is the only ring to not have a pad equivalent.
 * Arrows can be rotated to send the icon in an angled direction, the rotation limit being ±70°.
 * The arrow orbs can be held on to indefinitely, propelling the player for as long as it is held.
 * Making contact with yellow and magenta pads and rings with the wave will trigger their animation despite the wave not interacting.
 * Hitting a green ring using the wave will invert its gravity but will not obscure its diagonal travel.

Miscellaneous
Decorations= Decorations enhance visual design. Certain decorations can be customised using colour channels while others pulsate. Types of decorations include animated decorations, located under the fifth tab; ground decorations and lighting effects (not included in the galleries below), located under the eighth tab; regular decorations, located under the ninth tab; pulsating decorations, located under the tenth tab, and rotating decorations, located under the eleventh tab.

Rotating decorations
Triggers= A number of map components are purely cosmetic, or may have effects applied to them. Physical objects can cycle through colours and opacity, which may be distracting while playing. In contrast, what may look like physical objects can also be background objects, which may again fool the player (for example fake spikes, sawblades, and thorns).

Other objects may be used as markers to identify routes or hazards (punctuation marks, crosses, arrow signs, etc). Three-dimensional blocks were also introduced in Update 1.9 and in-game text, with 12 different fonts, was introduced in Update 2.0, which does not affect gameplay but has the potential to make a level look more polished.

In Update 2.0, infinite color channels were introduced, allowing players to now use a lot of colors in various background objects and tiles, unlike before in 1.9, when players are limited to only four color channels.

Moving, pulsing, alpha, toggle, and spawn triggers are invisible objects that can be used to either confuse a player or make a level better and more vibrant. They can be set to where it can only be activated if the player gets in range of the player's hitbox, which is useful for secret coins or increasing the difficulty of a level. Also introduced in Update 2.0 were keys and keyholes. Their function is only to serve as a visual guide for the triggers (such as move triggers, toggle triggers, alpha triggers, rotatation triggers, etc.)

Design and transition
The background, ground, ground 2, line, default object color, 3D Line and custom colours can change colour as a way to create a more vibrant gameplay experience. Each has its own trigger with the amount of options varying from each one, e.g. the BG trigger having "Tint Ground" as an option whilst the others do not. The colours can also be changed to one of the player's assigned colour, making the level's design affected by a player's choice. Other map components change the way objects transition into and out of a level, not physically affecting anything, as further visual enhancement, but may reduce the amount of time the player has to react to their entry. With Update 2.0, grounds with two colors were introduced.