Hangry Animals - Nom Nom Express - Game Development #10

Hey Hangry Fam,

This week we’re cracking open the real behind-the-scenes bits. From greybox level design to community-suggested chaos, we’ve been deep in the dev trenches building out our latest stage: Woof Creek.

We’ve just uploaded a 15-minute walkthrough video showing our current progress... including core mechanics, enemy pacing, and that sweet difficulty curve spike that kicks in around Level 3, where you’re tasked with successfully delivering 7 full orders under pressure.

Play Video

🛠 Grey box to Gameplay

Right now, we're balancing that tightrope walk between fun and frustration. That means:

• Grey boxing the map layout to test flow and player routes
• Layering in challenge mechanics
• Adding pickups and hazards that feel earned, not just thrown in

This is where real iteration happens... lots of playtesting, feedback, and a healthy dose of “what if we made it way more ridiculous?”

🍫 Pickups Built So Far

We’ve been fleshing out how to reward clever play and support players through the chaos. Here’s what’s in the box right now:

• Time Saver ⏱ – Adds 10/25/30 seconds to your shift clock
• Health 💖 – Small, half, or full refills
• Speed Boost 💨 – Instantly refills your boost bar
• BeatBox 3000 – Repels enemies in the direction they’re facing
• Choctagons 🍫 – Projectiles for FPS mode sequences
• Aura Healing – Looks cool... we’ll figure it out, promise

🧠 From the Community: What You’ve Helped Shape

You’ve all been incredible with suggestions, and we’re starting to roll them into the dev roadmap. A few faves that are being prototyped or planned:

• 🕊 Seagull Dive Bomb Attacks – Call in your avian allies for poop-blitz raids on alien enemies. Because of course.
• Hang Glider Wings – Inspired by the dreamy mechanics in PaperKlay (which we loved), these will pop out in later Sky Stages to help cross massive gaps.
• Power Line Obstacles – Carrying too tall a stack of meals? Duck or reroute. Otherwise, the food will fly.
• 🍌 Banana Slips & Stick-Waving Pedestrians – More advanced stages will introduce these lovable nuisances to make your path even more ridiculous.

We’re also exploring how to design obstacles that force players to make decisions:

• Do you risk carrying the full stack and go the power line route?
• Or break up the delivery and double back with speed boosts?

Tactical chaos is our love language.

💰 Two Grant Submissions – Fingers Crossed!

We’ve officially submitted two funding applications this week. These will support everything from:

• Gameplay refinement
• Art and level expansion
• Platform and ecosystem development

We’ll keep you posted on progress, but the energy and effort going in behind the scenes are seriously next level. We’re pushing for meaningful, fun-first play wrapped around a bigger mission — and loving the journey so far.

Thanks for being part of this wild ride. If you haven’t already, check out the new Woof Creek video walkthrough and let us know your thoughts. More chaotic goodness coming soon…

Team Hangry