Doodle Jump — the Ultimate Classic iOS game
I still remember the first time when I saw someone playing Doodle Jump on the iPhone 3GS, I asked my mom to buy me an iPod Touch, just for this game. By fully utilizing iPhone’s accelerometer, Doodle Jump became of one of the most classic games on the iOS platform.
The Week 1’s assignment in the Creating Immersive World class requires us playing a game for at least one hour. Since I only had Doodle Jump and 王者荣耀 (King of Glory) on my phone, and I thought that ‘King of Glory’ might be too complicated to analyze it in one article, Doodle Jump became the game that I would
Almost 10 years ago, Doodle Jump launched the first version on the iOS platform, and received both commercial and critics success. So many people bought the iPhone/iPod Touch product just for this game back to that time. There are so many factors that makes this game become a bomb. I will explain it below.
Simplicity Is the Key
Nowadays, a lot of the game developers are trying to add as much function as they can to the game (which also makes them more money by adding the in-app purchase). Different from those people, the developer of Doodle Jump only sets one goal: Jump, as high as you can. However, the setup of the monsters and the different levels of setting the stairs makes the game more challenging. Each time I played the game, I wanted to reach to a higher score, and made the monster jump higher. Also, it is so easy to start the game without any instructions. There are only two interactions that users can make: click the screen, and tilt the device. The cost of learning is so low that even my mom can learn how to play the game in a minute. The simplicity of the game makes it so addictive!
Distinguishable Art and Sound Design
From the name of the game, the user can tell that the whole game aesthetic is DOODLE. What I like the most is the coherence of the art direction. From the illustration to the font, the arts style makes the user feel that they play it on the paper with the actual doodle. This is a really rare but distinguishable art direction when everything else on iPhone was skeuomorphism (an art style that make things look as real as the object itself). What increase the immersive gaming experience are the little details on the game interface, such as the ripped-paper-like black hole, and the small crack on the special stairs when the monster jumps on it. Also, something that worth mentioning is the grid-like background. The background is definitely one of the key elements to gather everything together and enhance the experience when the user is playing.
In terms of the sound design, I think it is another highlight of the gaming experience. I strongly suggest the user turning on the sound when playing the game, because it will make the game somehow easier to play. Before the little character approached the monster, the user can hear the sound of the monster, so that the user can get time to prepare for shooting the monster. Also, when the character gets closer to an item, the item makes special sounds. For example, the UFO buzzes, and the spring bounces.
More Presets to be Discovered
What also makes the game more interesting and dynamic are the various presets. On the bottom of the front page, there’s a hint telling the user to swipe to select different themes, and each theme has its special objects for the user to explore. With the possibility of exploring more things, the user will spend more time on the game. Moreover, in the updated version, there are tasks for users to achieve, like blast 10 monsters or jump on 10 springs. The user will keep challenging themselves for those tasks and their personal score. With all that I said, the user eventually becomes the core of the game. That’s what makes the game so successful.
