A concept pitch for Figma
Figma
Flyswatter
Sara arms flyswatter · swings near Max · cursor explodes · Max respawns in 5s
The idea
Smack! That's my component.
Figma is collaborative by nature—but sometimes it's a little too collaborative. The Figma Flyswatter is a playful remedy.
A secret shortcut turns your cursor into a flyswatter, letting you swat other people's pesky cursors, and drop them to the bottom of the screen (only for a few seconds). It's built to add laughter and levity to busy work sessions.
How it works
1
Press the shortcut
A secret key combination arms the flyswatter. Your cursor transforms into a green mesh swatter. Colleagues can see you've armed.
2
Click near someone
Within range of their cursor = a hit. Too far away = a miss. Aim matters — you can swing and miss.
3
Their cursor explodes
Particles burst outward. Their cursor vanishes. They're out for 5 seconds, then respawn — already plotting revenge.
4
Back to work
5 seconds later, everything's back to normal. Tension broken. Everyone's laughing. The file gets saved.
What's already built
This is a working prototype, not a slide deck.
✓Multiplayer connection
Real-time sync via Ably — works across any machine, anywhere
✓Swat mechanic
Proximity detection, hit/miss logic, swing animation
✓Explosion effect
Particle burst, cursor vanishes, 5-second respawn timer
✓Figma plugin shell
Installable via manifest, runs in Figma Desktop today
◦Canvas-level swatting
Needs Figma's internal cursor API — the one thing only Figma can unlock
◦Native multiplayer layer
Would use Figma's existing real-time cursor infrastructure instead of REST polling
The missing piece is canvas interception. Figma's plugin sandbox is a floating iframe — it can't natively receive clicks on the canvas behind it. With Figma's internal cursor API, the swatter becomes a first-class experience: move anywhere in the file, swing from anywhere, hit from anywhere.
Why Figma
This works best as a native Figma feature.
As a community plugin it's a fun novelty. As a native Figma multiplayer feature it's a product moment. Figma already has the infrastructure: real-time cursor positions, user identity, canvas-level interaction. The Flyswatter makes delightful use of what's already there.
Get in touch
Let's make this real.
Built by Sara Steinberg. Happy to demo the prototype, share the code, or talk through how this could live inside Figma.