Doodle Bird
The Beginning: The time was 2014, I was in college as a 4th year Computer Science Major. We had those early smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy S2, iPhone 5/5s. Some time during this year a game took the world by storm. That game was called "Flappy Bird". It was so simple and yet so challenging it makes you think "Why didn't we think of this sooner??". Despite the popularity of the game, a few months after it became a global success, the creator declared that he will be taking down Flappy Bird from both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
The world was surprised with his move and developers then proceeded to clone the game immediately and the Play Store and App Store was flooded with Flappy Bird clones. The clones were so rampant that Google Play Store was declining Flappy Bird clones some time in the past. From time to time, since 2014, a few games of the same mechanic has popped up and I kept my eye on them, but none of them have captured the thrill and simplicity of the original. Until today... I think...
I had decided to create a modern tribute to the original game but this time with improved physics and added mechanics. I created it to feel as challenging as the original but with its own twist and feel. I was able to play a copy of the original and comparing it to the version I have created, I would say I have accomplished what I intended to do. A reimagining inspired by the original with different physics, just as challenging but much modern and responsive as the honored game.
The Mechanics: The game starts by pressing the Play button and then proceeds to the game area where you play as the bird. You need to tap to keep him flying and this is also what you would use to control the altitude and time it right in order to pass through the colored walls along the way, resulting to requiring precise timing and rhythm but still has an ample margin of error so as to not make the game too punishing.
I designed its gravity so that it rises and falls at almost the same rate as the song "I Roll Up" by Wiz Khalifa, because that was the song I had been listening to on repeat while developing the game, and while programming in general.
The Design: Believe it or not, the bird's design was the very 2nd design it ever got, and I never tried other designs past that. The only difference from the first bird design is that the first one has less height making it look like a flatter tear drop, compared to the current official version.
The walls were a deliberate decision to be the most basic looking rectangles as to not copy any design from existing games. There was a rumour back then as to why the owner of Flappy Bird took the game down, the rumour goes that Nintendo sued him for using the "Pipe" design from Super Mario.
These rumours were then proved to be false when Nintendo released a statement that they did not issue a lawsuit against Dong Nguyen, the creator of Flappy Bird. BUT, It's better to be safe than sorry, so yea random colored rectangles it is for Doodle Bird.
The Name: By this point I have the core mechanics and the basic design style in my head, but the game does not have a name yet. I couldn't think of a color scheme, so I left everything black and white while I continued designing and improving the physics and gaps for the walls and their spawn rate.
That was when a realization hit me: "I could just leave it black and white, and then the perfect name popped into my head... Doodle Bird."
It was a flash of genius! I thought it was very fitting for a black and white themed game, and so I named it that. However, while playing the game for a while I realized it becomes boring if everything was black and white, I then was faced with a dilemma, should I just color it and ditch the name Doodle Bird, or leave it black and white?...
I took a break and put deep thoughts into it. After a few minutes of ruminating, I decided to accept the fact that black and white will kill the game faster than my internet speed, so there was no question. I should color them, and the name was too good to replace.
What to do then? Easy. I decided to combine the best of both worlds. I colored the background, the walls, I added mountains in the far distance and buildings beneath those mountains. Voila!
Masterpiece.
That was a Eureka moment for me, I left the bird black and white for the sole reason of representing the name of the game "Doodle Bird", but to my surprise it worked perfectly with the colored background. It's like a subtle hint at the irony of life where everything you see has colors and you yourself is a blank slate that represents anything and everything that you experience, which gives everyone different shades, just like the obstacles of the game which shows up randomly, no one has the same path, but we are all the same bird trying to fly.
Ending Thoughts: I am satisfied with how the game works and of course anything can be iterated and improved in the future, I am still learning a lot of things and in these trying times, I hope my game has entertained you and hope that this article does so as well. It certainly entertained me while writing this and reminiscing how I made the game, all while listening to Roll Up by Wiz Khalifa
