Demola Trainee Programme: Gem Dropper

The market for Arcade and Puzzle games has a few proven concepts and millions of mediocre copy cats. Innovating from proven concepts is the key to success. In this project you should combine the core mechanics of some of the most popular Match-3 Arcade Games (e.g. Bubble Island or Diamond Dash) into a new hit game mechanic: A Gem Dropper on Mobile.

The goal is to create a polished prototype for the iPhone demonstrating it can be fun and has the potential to motivate millions of users to play it on a regular basis.

About Wooga

Founded in 2009 in Europe´s technology hub, Berlin, Wooga is the third largest social game developer in the world. Wooga creates high quality games for Facebook and iOS, with a specific focus on emotional character development, usability, and superb localization in seven languages. 

Wooga is committed to creating innovative and original game titles for players of all ages, bringing millions of users around the world together through a world of gaming. Wooga´s free-to-play Facebook games are enjoyed by over 34 million active players per month - 70% of which are women. Wooga´s games generate revenue by selling interactive goods: Monster World players, for example, have bought more than twenty-eight million magic wands so far - making Wooga the biggest supplier of interactive magic equipment in the world. Wooga is also a world leader in the development of cutting-edge technologies, enabling millions of users to compete with their friends. 

The Gem Dropper concept

You have a squared game board filled with colored blocks (e.g. gems) at the bottom. There are 4-5 different colors. At the top of the game board there is a shooter that holds one colored block. The shooter is controlled by the user and can be moved horizontally across the full width of the game board. On tap the block in the shooter is dropped down onto the board. Blocks can only be dropped straight down vertically. 

3 connected blocks of the same color are removed and score points. Also groups of 3+ blocks that drop into place after others were removed from the board should automatically be removed. If a certain amount of blocks is cleared new blocks should automatically push onto the game board from the bottom. 

The game has a time limit of 60 seconds. The goal is to remove as many blocks as possible in 60 seconds and there

References:

Fossil Fever (http://www.gameduell.com/fossil-fever.html)

Amazon Speed (http://www.king.com/games/puzzle-games/amazon-speed/?language=en_US)

Tasks:

- Work out and optimize the described Gem Shooter concept and create a polished gameplay prototype

- Put special emphasis on creating a fast-paced experience with superb controls

- Extent the basic gameplay and integrate advanced features like score multipliers or power ups

- The prototype should be optimized for the iPhone 4

Required Team Members:

- 2D artist (game and UI)

- iOS programmer(s)

- Game designer / producer

The project should be a fun experience – for your users and for yourself! Be creative and think of ways to include a subtle touch of humor and heart to your product. The more you love your game, the better it will turn out in the end.

Bonus Level: Visit Wooga!

In addition to normal Demola project mentoring, all selected team members will get a free two-day trip to our offices here in Berlin! During these two days the project team will pitch their project results directly to Wooga's product team and founders, get exclusive presentations from the cutting edge of social game development, and of course party hard! Outstanding performance during the project can even result in a job offer from Wooga!

DISCLAIMER:

Note that Demola Trainee model is NOT the same as Demola  Academy model even though Demola Trainee program is organised in parallel timeline. Demola Trainee model is a part-time job that requires at least 20h / week commitment from all selected team members.