Handy Helper

Inspiration & Target Player

1. Satisfaction of match game! This classic gameplay is attractive forever.
2. Nostalgia for 2000s vibe. Feel at home when see these old memories.

Feature

• Creative Matching Gameplay
• 2000s Nostalgia Style
• Satisfying Matching Fun

Story Background

The old system is about to vanish! The paint bucket, eraser, magnifying glass, and other tools are trapped deep under piles of colorful blocks. Youre a brave little handthis is your moment! Launch tiles, clear blocks, rescue your tool friends, and escape together! But before you go, theres still one special thing you have to find

Core Rules

1. Goal: Shoot and match color blocks to eliminate them and reach the final area deep below.

2. Player Abilities:

• Shoot to jump: left mouse to shoot. Hold to enter bullet time. Shooting pushes you backward.
• Swap Color: You can see the next color. to swap between current & next color.
• Use tools: Press space to use tools.

3. Matching Rules:

• Match-3: If you shoot a color that matches at least 3 blocks of the same color, those blocks are eliminated.
• Drop Rules: If a block has same-color blocks below or around, it drops. Otherwise, it stays in the air.
• Chain Match: If a dropped block lands and matches 3 blocks, they are eliminated. This way, clearing chains of blocks will give you extra points.

4. Player Limits:

• Gravity pulls you down. You cannot touch blocks or the ground. If you do, you lose 1 HP. You have 3 HP total.
• Deadline: A line at the top moves down at a set speed. If it touches you, you lose the game.

Core Experiences

1. Eliminating Fun, especially in chain
2. A sense of floating and shuttling among the blocks.

V1.0 Jet

Problems: Busy jetting and shooting without enjoying either. The score-based goal disrupted the fun of match.

V2.0 - Shoot to jump & Clear Screen

Problems: Elimination feels shallow, lacking strategic fun. Floating feels stuck, no spatial progress. Level feel either waiting or overwhelming.

V3.0 - Shuttle & Dig

Exploration: Why do I have to move? Why cant I just stay fixed in the air and clear the blocks? When players asked this, it was clear the fun of floating was missing.

Solution: Drop Rules & Dig Goals. I removed the piling blocks rule: Blocks will stay in the air unless there are blocks of the same color below. This way, there are threats above and below, making floating exciting and giving a sense of shuttle. To help players feel like they are making progress, I changed the goal to digging deep and expanding the game view beyond a single fixed screen.

V3.1 - Windows Tools

Art Style: 2000s Windows. Art style was out of a flash of inspiration!

Tools Usage: Paint Bucket (Dye 5 rows), Straw (Clear 8 rows), Eraser (Eliminate blocks directly), Spray (Dye blocks), Magnifier (Grow to an invincible big fist).

V3.2 - Game Feel

1. To give fruitful feedback: Shoot Recoil, Eliminate combos, Tools sprite changes.

2. To provide some protection: Bouncy player, Falling block protection (Circle collider and unharmfulness), Face shooting protection.

Version 3.3 - Diverse Level Design

After testing, players feedback that all the levels feel similar. I added differences in mechanics (Map size, Number of Colors, Alien Terrain) and Art elements.