QWOP
Run 100 Meters With Four Difficult Keys
QWOP is a physics-based running game created by Bennett Foddy. You control an athlete named Qwop who needs to complete a 100-meter race. The goal sounds simple, but the controls make even taking a few steps difficult. Instead of pressing one button to run, you control different parts of the athlete’s legs separately.
The awkward movement is the whole point of QWOP. Your runner bends, stretches, falls, and sometimes moves in completely unexpected ways. Learning how the legs work together takes patience.
Q and W Control the Thighs
The Q and W keys control the runner’s thighs. Each key moves the two thighs in opposite directions.
Q moves the right thigh forward while moving the left thigh backward. W does the opposite.
Pressing these keys without thinking can quickly send the runner into a split or make him fall backward. You need to combine them with the lower-leg controls to create something close to a running motion.
O and P Control the Calves
The O and P keys control the calves. Just like Q and W, they affect the two legs in opposite ways.
The challenge comes from coordinating all four keys. You need one leg to move forward while the other supports the body. Then the movement needs to switch before the runner loses balance.
It often takes many failed attempts before you find a rhythm that moves the athlete forward.
Falling Can End the Run
QWOP uses loose ragdoll-style physics. The runner’s body reacts to gravity and momentum, which makes small mistakes easy to turn into a complete fall.
You can sometimes recover from an awkward position, but letting the runner collapse usually means starting another attempt.
This is why rushing rarely works. A slow but controlled movement can travel farther than pressing all four keys quickly.
Try to Reach the Finish Line
The full goal is to travel 100 meters. Reaching that distance is difficult enough that simply making steady progress can feel like an achievement.
QWOP has no complicated story or huge collection of levels. Its entire challenge comes from mastering four keys and learning how a pair of virtual legs responds to them.
Control the thighs, bend the calves, keep the runner upright, and slowly work your way toward the 100-meter finish line without collapsing onto the track.