The short story
Create a fun, addictive mobile game with simple physics that was easy to play but challenging to master.
The long story
Fish Balls was originally designed as a mobile physics-based iOS game. It was initially built using Cocos2d/Objective-C. We released it on the App Store in 2011 and had 100,000 downloads. Fast forward to 2023, we wanted to give it new life and bring the app to multiple platforms quickly which meant exploring modern tools like Unity or Unreal Engine. We settled on Unity as the best choice for a 2D physics-based game. Also, we wanted to test the ability to use AI tools like ChatGPT and Cursor to assist in development.
While LLM’s are a useful tool, we found that they struggled with the nuance and the complexity of the original code and had to rewrite large parts of the new C# codesbase by hand. On the other hand, it was useful in building focused tools to reuse original assets or rewriting shorter scripts. As a side project, we pushed forward with migrating the game mechanics to match the original design and then publish it on the App Store and Google Play.
Currently, we are working to release this on more platforms, add new game modes, and add new features to make it even more engaging.
Takeaways
- Developed in Unity for cross-platform performance.
- Implemented custom physics overcoming physics engine limitations related to fast moving box2d collisions.
- Utilized AI tools to assist in transitioning language base from Objective-C to C#.
The result
A published cross platform game that demonstrates technical proficiency in game development and interactive systems. Currently available on the App Store and Google Play.
Looking for support? Visit the official Fish Balls Game Page.