Devlog 01 — The Game Plan for TapTech Tycoon

In my last post, I explained why I have a four-month deadline to build and ship a game. Now, I want to share what I’m actually building.

The project is called TapTech Tycoon. It’s an idle/clicker game for Android about the scrappy, relatable journey of a solo developer starting with nothing but a dream and a questionable computer. The core fantasy is about feeling that growth, where every small upgrade feels like a massive victory.

After a lot of brainstorming, I’ve settled on a few core pillars that will guide every design decision:

  • Scrappy Growth: You start from the bottom. Your first chair is a milk crate, your first desk is a stack of cardboard boxes. Every upgrade is earned and feels meaningful.
  • Humor with Heart: The game will be filled with light jokes and relatable developer struggles. The humor is aimed at celebrating the grind, not punching down.
  • Satisfying Taps: The core clicker experience has to feel great. Every tap will have crisp, juicy feedback to make the grind enjoyable.
  • Visible Progress: As you earn money and skills, your environment will visually upgrade. You’ll see your PC get better, your furniture improve, and eventually, you’ll move out of the bedroom and into a real office.

The Core Gameplay: How It Works

The game is structured in stages, starting with Stage 1: The Bedroom Coder. Your goal is to earn $5,000 from a single breakthrough project, which will allow you to move into a garage office and start Stage 2.

Here’s how you’ll get there:

  1. The Grind: It all starts with you at your computer. You’ll tap a button to “Fiddle”, earning Practice Points (PP). This is your primary resource for getting smarter, but it drains your Focus (stamina). To keep going, you’ll need to refill your Focus with classic developer fuel: Instant Coffee, Ramen, or the occasional Nap.

  2. Learning & Unlocking: You spend your hard-earned PP to Learn Skills. These start with the basics like “Typing Basics” and “How to use computers” and progress to things like “Version Control (Git)” and “Unity Fundamentals.”

  3. Getting Paid: Learning new skills unlocks the ability to take on Freelance Jobs. These are short, timed tasks that reward you with the game’s main currency: Cash.

  4. Upgrading Your Life: This is where the fun starts. You’ll use your cash to buy Upgrades. I’m thinking of everything from a “Single-Core Snail CPU” to an actual ergonomic chair. These won’t just be cosmetic; they’ll give you real bonuses, like earning PP faster or consuming less Focus.

  5. The Breakthrough: Once you have enough skills and a decent setup, you can start your own Projects. These are your ticket to passive income. Your first big goal is to launch a project and upgrade it until it earns you that magic $5,000, proving you’ve got what it takes to level up.

It’s All About the Vibe

Beyond the mechanics, the game’s personality will come from the writing and the random events. You might get a call from your concerned mother, find a moth has joined your team and is harmlessly flying around the screen, or suffer a “Potato Power Supply Failure.”

My Next Step

So, that’s the plan. That’s the game that’s been living in my head. It feels ambitious for a four-month solo project, but having it all written down makes it feel real and, hopefully, achievable.

Now that I have a clear idea of the mechanics, my very next job is to figure out how a player will actually interact with all of this. It’s time to start sketching out the UI.