Bad-Bug
Casual | Strategy |
Your Next Game Addiction
This simple 2D mobile game will have you glued to your phone. Whether you are tied up in a traffic jam or trying to pass time on an exercise bike, or you are just laying on your couch eating chips, boredom can get the better of you. What better way to pass the time than with this mobile game?
Simply tap on the bugs and Do Not let them escape. Through Bad-Bug, you will be able to release your fear and smash the bugs with your finger!
This game includes three different types of butterflies, which have to be set free and not killed. Tapping on the butterflies will end the game.
Roles and Responsibilities
Albiona Ajeti: Programmer/Developer, UI Designer, Tester & Music Game Composer.
Responsible for programming the game on Construct 2 and using JavaScript, CSS, and HTML5 on PhoneGap to make it compatible for iOS. Produce sound effects and music using various instruments, adobe audition and garage band for the games. Helped design the UI of the game on Construct 2.
Qendrim Ajeti: Game Designer, Animator, & Music Game Composer.
Responsible for conceptualizing the game, and developing characters and other designs using various editors/software such as Unity, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.
Project Stakeholders - Albiona and Qendrim Ajeti (developers of the game), Game Players & Apple
Problem Statement
After graduating from high school, I decided to take a gap year and teach myself how to develop mobile games. The problem was that we did not have any experience with programming or developing mobile games for Apple. We were unfamiliar with the process of mobile game development. Additionally, we did not have our Apple licenses or the knowledge on how to obtain them.
Ideas, Goals and Design
When developing this game, we started from scratch. As mentioned before, we were not familiar with mobile game development. After spending a few weeks getting familiar with Visual Programming, Javascript, HTML and CSS, Qendrim and I sat down and started brainstorming some ideas for a game.
Our goal was to develop a 2D game in under a year that was addicting and fun.
Since this was our first game, we wanted to explore broader demographics and audiences and not limit the game to a specific age group.
We obtained the idea of having a game where people can tap on the bugs and kill them. The game's goal was to prevent the bugs from reaching the bottom of the screen while avoiding the butterflies. We wanted the game to be fast-paced, and the higher the score, the faster the bugs would move down the screen, and the more dynamic and challenging the game would get.
Notes from our Brainstorming Session
Bug Design Process -
From Draft Design to Redesign to Final Product
Qendrim graduated from a Video Game Design and Animation program, so he was already familiar with game design and I had some graphic design experience already under my belt, thus, designing the game was not a challenging step for us. What was demanding was creating a system of game development that worked for both of us. It was his first time working with a programmer, and it was my first time developing a game as a programmer.
After a few weeks of trial and error, we developed a system that we have implemented in our game development process ever since! We designed drafts of the characters, backdrops, and other objects of the game, and I use the drafts to develop the game's basic functionalities while he gets the final designs almost finalized. Then, I incorporate the designs on the game and make the game compatible for iOS.
Results & Takeaways
We achieved our goal of developing the game in under a year. We exceeded our expectations and released Bad-Bug in under six months. We are also very proud that our first submission to Apple was accepted for release, without any significant negative feedback.
Teaching myself how to code with different languages and on these different software & engines and obtaining the Apple License all in 6 months has been an incredible achievement that I'm really proud of.
Bad-Bug has received positive feedback from users worldwide, and I will always take pride in this game since it is the first one that we have released on the Apple App Store.
We have encountered numerous challenges during those six months, mainly due to our inexperience in developing mobile games. For example, having the files be exported and converted from one software to another was incredibly challenging because data can get lost and corrupted along the way.
Developing a system that works between a designer and a programmer was another problematic task that we overcame after some trials and errors.
Additionally, the game's touch sensitivity was problematic because we had tested out the game on the latest devices at the time, and we failed to take into consideration older and slower smartphones and if the sensitivity would differ on them. This error was fixed with our second version of Bad-Bug.
I learned a lot during the development process of this game. I learned how to develop games with visual programming and other numerous programming languages, such as Javascript, HTML and CSS. Additionally, I learned how vital the process of working with a designer is and how the designer and programmer need to work great collaboratively to achieve the shared vision. Another major takeaway is that I genuinely enjoy developing mobile games, and I want to continue developing other fun games for people to play.
Marketing
I managed promotional assets creation for my games, such as trailers, web assets, screenshots, and store descriptions.
And I promoted my games through engaging posts on multiple social media pages, such as Instagram and Facebook.
These promotional videos were designed on Adobe After Effects.
I wrote and designed the content of the video. I decided to use humor in this advertising campaign as it can be an excellent way for our game’s advertising content to stand out from the competition.
From research, I found that comedy videos are more memorable, and it can help viewers consciously or subconsciously like a brand, and aids in building trust with them.