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Sudoku Boost: classic sudoku game

Sudoku Boost: classic sudoku game

  • Client
    Internal Project
  • Platform
    Android

Sudoku Boost is a mobile game based on classic sudoku rules but enhanced with unique boosters that make the gameplay more dynamic and engaging. The game features six different boosters, each helping players solve puzzles faster and enjoy the process more.

Case Features

  • Automatic Level Generation
  • Blend of Gameplay with Puzzles
  • Strong Product Metrics - Day 1 Retention 31%

About Sudoku Boost

An innovative booster system has been integrated into the classic sudoku rules, significantly simplifying the gameplay process and adding a new layer of strategy.

These boosters can be purchased with in-game currency, which players earn by successfully completing levels and performing various tasks. This system not only adds dynamism to the familiar gameplay but also encourages players to participate more actively in the game, aiming to earn more currency to acquire useful power-ups.

Boosters include a variety of functions:

  • "Hint" - Reveals a random number on the board.
  • "Reveal Number" - Reveals a specific number in the selected cell on the board.
  • "Freeze Time" - Freezes the timer for 60 seconds.
  • "Reveal All Numbers X" - Reveals the number chosen by the player in all cells. If 2 is chosen, all twos on the board are revealed.
  • "Victory Reward x5" - Increases the level reward by five times.
  • "Unlimited Mistakes" - Allows unlimited mistakes, ensuring a win.
In addition to the unique set of boosters, the game incorporates a classic puzzle mechanic that adds another layer of engagement. Each time players complete daily tasks, they receive puzzle pieces, encouraging them to return to the game. This is not just a collectible element but a powerful motivational tool: to complete an entire puzzle, players need to perform daily tasks for 20-30 days.

Moreover, the puzzles are constantly updated, and new ones are added, maintaining interest and variety. This system significantly boosts 30-day player retention, as players strive to complete what they started and gain satisfaction from the finished image. It also fosters a habit of returning to the game daily, contributing to building a loyal audience and increasing time spent in the game.

Interesting Fact

The game was developed using a unique level generation algorithm that allows for the creation of an infinite number of unique puzzles. This algorithm not only ensures variety and complexity in the game but also adapts to the player’s skill level, offering increasingly challenging tasks as they progress.

Thanks to this approach, players can continuously test and improve their skills without encountering repetitive puzzles.


How the Game Was Created

During discussions within our team, we decided to develop a game with clear and simple mechanics that would be popular worldwide and have a potentially large market. However, during planning, we misjudged the market distribution among competitors, discovering that 70-80% of the market was dominated by five major players. This later played a cruel trick on us, but more on that later.

After selecting the category and mechanics (puzzles — sudoku), we began collecting potential search queries.
  1. Since our experience includes not only mobile game development but also over 10 years of work on web services and automation, we started by analyzing regular search queries using Google Keywords statistics and a bit of Yandex Wordstat.
  2. We gathered queries from Google Play through suggestions and used popular ASO services for keyword planning.
  3. The most frequent queries were checked via Google Trends for declining trends. We found no declines; on the contrary, we saw that the game was very stable in the market, making it suitable for an experiment.
Understanding the market size and obtaining a list of queries for ASO promotion, we moved on to creating the game.

The first task was to address the issue of level availability in the game. We needed to source them somehow. After researching level generation online, we found a suitable option that randomly generated game levels of specified difficulty. Difficulty was determined by the number of empty cells on the board at the start of a level. It’s known that more advanced approaches also use the density of number placement in each square for more precise difficulty distribution, but we didn’t go that far.

While we were While we were preparing the generator, our designer had already created the initial game interfaces, which were handed over to the Unity developer. By the way, at that time, we didn’t work with other engines, and we still don’t, except for game porting.

After several iterations, we completed the game, fixed most bugs, and opened it to the public. This took 3 months of part-time work, and the game launched with only basic features, excluding:
  1. Global and local top player rankings
  2. Player experience accumulation, level assignment, and titles for earned experience
  3. Themed events
  4. Daily challenges with monthly picture unlocks
  5. An additional classic puzzle mechanic, which can be considered part of the meta-game. This mechanic serves two purposes: long-term retention, as collecting a single puzzle picture requires playing for 20-30 days, and increased daily playtime due to the need to complete daily goals, which reward puzzle pieces.
We added these features later, enhancing the game’s functionality and testing player reactions. Thanks to this, the game became truly unique in its genre.

Team Composition

  • 2D Interface Designer
  • Unity Developer
  • Project Manager

Interesting

  • Implemented in 3 Months
  • Level Generator with a Preset Capacity of 20,000
  • Additional Gameplay in the Form of Classic Puzzles During Bonus Level Completion
  • Top Players from Different Countries Worldwide
  • Player Levels, Experience Accumulation, Ranks

Gallery

The Gallery Includes Images Created for Events and Special Occasions

For daily events, our artists created images that changed monthly, as well as images for themed events, some of which are featured in the gallery here. Currently, to support the game, we use generated images via FusionBrain or Midjourney, but these images are not included in the website gallery and can only be seen in the game itself.

Historical Fact About the Sudoku Game Genre

Sudoku, despite being associated with Japanese culture, actually has its roots in Europe. A prototype of sudoku appeared in late 18th-century France and was called the "Magic Square." However, the modern form of sudoku was popularized by the Japanese company Nikoli in the 1980s. They gave the game its name "sudoku," which translates from Japanese as "numbers that must be unique."

Did You Know?

  • Average LTV for the genre worldwide (WW) - $3.58
  • Average LTV for the genre in the US - $5.33 (with a maximum of up to $20)
  • Median LTV for WW - $0.38
  • Median LTV for the US - $1.27

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