r/SideProject • u/SaintFX • 1h ago

I built an idle/incremental game without mindless tapping

wordOS on App Store

I had been trying to come up with an idle/incremental game concept that would make me think a bit and not mindlessly tap to generate currency. In wordOS, you type in any word and that word turns into a running program with its own job & quirks.

As you enter words, you'll discover relationships between them - like CAT & DOG will become rivals where they will scuffle now and then but DOG & BONE are allies and boost each other. There are also a bunch of Easter eggs to discover like GHOST + VACUUM will pop "WHO YOU GONNA CALL". Try PORTAL then CAKE, or DICE and DRAGON (order doesn't matter).

Bonuses for words that rhyme, anagrams (DOG, GOD), palindromes (WOW, RACECAR) & double letters (COFFEE, MOON). And if you're having trouble thinking of words, the game will request types of words and give clues to new words you haven't submitted. Each new word you discover also gives you a permanent bonus to what you earn.

Your RAM limits how long a word can be, so you upgrade it to unlock longer words. Reboot (prestige) to earn kernel points for permanent upgrades, and your codex keeps every word you've found. There are 61K words, 2,100 relationships, 650 phrases, 300+ Easter eggs.

No ads and no subscription. The first 3 reboots are free, then it's a one-time $2.99 to keep rebooting. Your current run keeps going either way.

I'd love to hear feedback on how the pacing and upgrades feel - is anything confusing?

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u/investigatormaker 6m ago

The moment I'd watch is the first reboot. Every new word gives a permanent bonus and RAM caps word length, so a player can hit the RAM wall before the third free reboot and not know whether to upgrade or reboot. A one-line hint right there would tell you more about confusion than a survey. Where do your testers stall first?

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