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Matchy Cat
Game
Title
Origin
new
existing
legacy workflow
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Description
Matchy Cat is a puzzle-first virtual-pet game where the cat shows an active need, the player deploys and uses a relevant care station before earning resources, and puzzle-generated resources satisfy that station's visible requirements while the cat sustains the action. The current discovery experiment rebuilds this reverse-requirements loop from the strongest build011 no-Patience baseline, with Patience, recovery, Bonding runtime effects, and top-level meter UI inactive.
Project context
Current experiment: Build011 Reverse-Requirements Station Loop on branch codex/build011-reverse-requirements, based from commit fbb2ae7. The candidate is ready for human Unity review/build: no active Patience/recovery/ReturnCatNeed/Call Cat Back/Bonding runtime effects, no top-level meters, Cat Locker station entries deploy before resources are earned, the matching station accepts the cat immediately, the initial color generator reveal happens after cat acceptance, generated resources count only toward the active station requirements, direct feedback flies to the station, and completion resolves the active standard need. October 12–18: selected existing-build CrazyGames Basic Launch audience test; gameplay iteration paused. Preserve prior Poki history and unresolved hypotheses. Preparation and exact build/comparator identification are recorded in the CrazyGames experiment. Source: 75b7de5a-4dc2-484a-812b-6991580bc3ca
Player Promise
Persona
Fantasy
Solve colorful puzzles to care for a stubborn cat, physically guiding it toward comforting, playful, and useful interactions around its room.
Current validation question
Does the existing Matchy Cat gameplay baseline perform better with CrazyGames players than its recorded Poki baseline, enough to justify further investment?
Primary Reference
Reference
Reference thesis
Fishdom should be promoted back toward the Primary Reference for Matchy Cat. The strongest evidence now favors uninterrupted puzzle flow with lightweight cat-care meaning layered around it: play match-3, generate progress/resources, satisfy or improve something for the cat, then return quickly to the puzzle. Clumsy Ninja-derived systems should be treated as secondary and must re-earn their complexity one by one. Patience/recovery has failed that test and should stay removed. Bonding failed as implemented, but that is evidence against that Bonding design, not against all progression. Dragging, stations, and physical cat interaction are still candidates, but should be tested as presentation/payoff improvements rather than assumed core requirements. Near-term direction: Fishdom-primary puzzle flow, no active Patience/recovery, no new meta layer, and a stronger first-minute cat-care hook using composition, mood, VFX, transition, and existing cat animation where possible.
Alignment snapshot
Fishdom is used as the primary reference for puzzle-first flow: the puzzle remains the main activity, progress/resources create meaning around the cat-care fantasy, and care payoff returns the player quickly to play. Clumsy Ninja remains a secondary source for interaction feel and presentation only where a specific mechanic proves its value.
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