Pocket Rocket
Project Overview
Pocket Rocket was developed during my final year of University. Developed as an idle title inspired by web browser games such as Cookie Clicker. Pocket Rocket was designed to be played on mobile phones and forced players to manage their resources as they contend with the addictive "Clicking" mechanics the genre is known for.
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This project was developed in Unity.
Mechanics
Citizens and Scientists ​
As the player taps the screen they will generate citizens. These citizens will add to the overall population count however there is also a chance for a scientist to spawn. Though rare, scientists will provide a permanent buff to the rate at which the player's rocket is built.
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Goal: As the player taps, they will increase the population by 1000 with each input. The more citizens there are, the more resources that are required to keep the populace happy, as seen by the green bar in the top left-hand corner. However, tapping is the only way to create scientists. Players must balance the risk of increasing the population count to an unsustainable amount with the reward of the massive buffs that scientists can provide to the rate of growth to their rocket production. Because if their population ever revolts then it will be a game over and they will have to start again. Idle or "Clicker" titles are designed to be low maintenance games that players can dip into while they focus on other tasks. With this risk/reward mechanic applied to the core gameplay of the title I wanted players to become more invested and increase their focus on the game. Players are made to think if they should continue tapping or better manage their resources so they take the risk of trying to spawn another scientist.
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Rocket Production
The main goal of Pocket Rocket is to produce that largest rocket. The player is forced to manage their ever increasing populations happiness while their rocket is continuously in size.
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Civilian and Military resources: The depth in Pocket Rocket comes from resource management. The player must manage their resources to avoid a game over scenario. These resources are split between 2 categories; citizen and military spending. There are 3 sliders in each category that the player can adjust. Increasing the sliders in the citizens category will help keep the overall population happiness level high. Whereas increasing military spending will increase the rate at which their rockets grows but will also increase the rate at which their populations happiness decreases. Additionally, as their total population increases these resources will become harder to manage, leading the player to make tougher choices to either increase the size of their rocket or keep their citizens happy.
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Rocket growth: The player starts with a 1m tall rocket. The size of the rocket will continuously increase however the player can affect the rate at which it does. This is achieved by putting more resources into military spending or by tapping to spawn a scientist to give their rocket growth rate a permanent boost.