What Makes Clicker Games Amazing

We wouldn't want to assume that our readers would do something other than what they're supposed to do at school or work, but let's imagine a hypothetical scenario: You're in class, bored, with several hours ahead. You come across something a little different. It's a so-called "idle game" or "clicker". The next moment you realize time has flown by.

How did that happen? Let me give you a hint: clicker games are completely captivating.

The thing is, their design and mechanics are so simple that you have a better chance of creating such a game than of creating the next God of War. Before diving into more details, let's cover the basics.

What Are Clicker Games?

Clicker games, also known as incremental games, are games where players simply need to "click" to input actions.

For example, in Doge Miner, you repeatedly press buttons to earn bonuses, upgrades, and buildings. All of this is achieved by simply tapping the screen.

Depending on the game, there may be other aspects, such as positioning characters or buildings. But primarily you only need to press buttons to progress and develop in the game.

In Doge Miner 1 and 2, you press buttons to mine Dogecoin, the in-game currency. Eventually, you'll want to take your characters to the Moon (that's weird, I know) and build lunar colonies. Once on the moon, you press buttons to get even more currency and upgrades.

My description doesn't quite capture the game's essence, but you can trust me unconditionally: it's addictive. When I first started playing, having heard about clicker games, I thought it was a joke, a game that bored housewives waste time on to fill their day.

How wrong I was! I was glued to the screen, needing to collect enough coins to buy new Doge tools to finally reach the moon. I was completely immersed in the game.

From this arises a crucial aspect: the psychology behind clicker games.

What Makes Clicker Games Popular?

So what's all the fuss about? What makes many gamers just "click"? It's directly related to the reward system in our brain.

All we have to do is press a button. When we press, we get an immediate reward. These are the psychological and animal aspects of the human psyche that we constantly try to engage. We work for rewards over long periods. We go to school to get (hopefully) a good grade after a long time.

However, clicker games give you what you want immediately. They bypass all the complexities of completing a level and provide a reward as soon as a click is registered on your computer.

In games like Resident Evil, players get calming saves, herbs, and new weapons after long playthroughs. In games like Doge Miner 1 and 2, the reward system activates much faster.

Along with this deeper psychological aspect of clicker games, they can simply kill or fill time for many people daily. I can't say how many times I've wanted to fill a gap in time, but all my games were intense, deep ones like Shadow of War, Hitman 2, or Total War: Warhammer II.

In those, you don't get immediate rewards and can't play for less than half an hour; they require significant investment. But clickers and idle games require almost no stakes. You can pick up the game, play it, and finish within a few minutes. Your schedule can be almost unaffected by playing them (remember responsible time management, folks!).

What's in it for Game Owners?

There are several advantages for game owners as well. If you are a beginner developer or dabble in mobile game development, clicker games are a great way to build your portfolio. Thanks to their low cost, they are attractive to many game developers with limited budgets.

But the main thing about this aspect is that the potential revenue you can get from a clicker game can be astronomical, allowing you to earn a solid return on your creation. Games like Clicker Heroes can be played for free on Steam, but they generate profit for their projects through microtransactions.

Although some of you may look down on them, microtransactions are what help Clicker Heroes thrive. Microtransactions allowed Clicker Heroes to enter early access on Steam at a price of $30.00.

Many people play the game without engaging in microtransactions, but there is a small but significant portion of players who do. In the industry, they are called "whales". They spend on average more than $25 on microtransactions, and their total can reach thousands of dollars across games of different genres and systems.

Sales of a game like Clicker Heroes are estimated to exceed $10,000, which is quite impressive since it starts as a completely free game. $10k for a few months of work? I'm in! This is supported by analysis showing that gamer retention rates are high, meaning clicker players are very loyal, leading to steady income.

The speed of creating a game project can be impressive. Although you might prefer to work alone, keeping the vision (and revenue) to yourself, if you team up with others, you can complete a clicker game project in a short amount of time. It's definitely not a year-long project like the next Elder Scrolls game.

How to Create Your Own Clicker Game

Moving on to the foundational aspects: creating your own title that can compete with some of the greats. It may seem much more difficult at first, especially if you're new to coding. Before diving headfirst into coding and creation, you need to lay the groundwork for what your clicker game will be.

A game design document is essentially an outline of what you want the game to be. Goals, story, genre — everything. It's also a valuable tool to share with other team members to stay on the same page. What is the premise of the game? Is it an absurdist work of art like Doge Miner 1 and 2, or more of an RPG like Clicker Heroes?

This is one of the important stages of game development, where you can organize all the aspects that go into the foundation of the game.

Story

Although a story is not required for a clicker game, it can be a great opportunity to create a cohesive and engaging narrative behind the addictive gameplay. I know I like it when games have some story behind them to get immersed in the gameplay.

Of course, clicker games aren't exactly skill-based, but with a flood of similar games on the market, a great story can be what sets your clicker game apart from the rest.

Mechanics

What are the game's mechanics? Obviously, besides clicks, what can the player achieve by constantly clicking and upgrading items? In a game like Candy Box, players can not only click on candy but also kill monsters to get additional upgrades. Will players in your game be able to do something similar?

Describe these aspects as best you can.

Money

This will be your ROI, or return on investment. Of course, you can make the game completely free, mostly accessible via a web browser rather than Steam. However, I believe many game developers want and should be rewarded for their creativity and hard work. This can be done by charging a fee for using the game or using additional microtransactions.

The choice is yours.

Art Style

Here you can let your creativity run wild. How will the game be styled? Will you go for realism, cartoonish graphics, or surreal cut-out images? Will it be 2D or 3D? The choice is yours.

Remember, if you're not skilled in graphic design, hiring an artist or working with a qualified software development team is ideal for creating the best visuals.

Game Loop

The game loop is the cycle a player goes through while playing a clicker. For example, in Clicker Heroes 1 and 2, players click to exterminate monsters, earn income, upgrade, and kill monsters, forming a game loop.

How Will You Create Your Game Loop?

By all means, don't hesitate to experiment. It doesn't have to be a rigid three-tier system like many clicker games.

Game Engine

The main question: which game engine to use?

During the development process, many game engines will be available. Among all of them, the best for a clicker game is using the Unity Engine. Of course, you could use the popular Unreal Engine, but I think that would be overkill, like driving a Lamborghini to the end of the street instead of a long road trip.

Unity doesn't require high PC specs and is a great option for both 2D and 3D games. Many gamers are already familiar with Unity's capabilities, and it will be an excellent starting point for clicker games. Of course, Unity isn't free, but its quality is unmatched (except for Unreal), and your profits can easily exceed the cost of using the engine.

Unity also has excellent cross-platform support, so you can quickly port simple games to Android and iPhone. Accessibility will greatly help you.

Early Access, Audience, and KPIs

Releasing your game in early access, like Clicker Heroes 2, can be a viable and sensible option. You'll get valuable input from gamers, and it allows you to have open and honest dialogue with the audience.

Not to mention, it gives you a lot of leeway. Games like Rust were in early access for years, allowing developers to polish the game to perfection. You won't need years in early access, but still.

Most importantly, this is when your game's functionality gets its final check. Does everything work? Do all features run smoothly as they should? Don't forget KPIs (key performance indicators) to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Release

Perhaps this is where the real work begins. You need to make sure everything runs smoothly and develop new content if you wish. Just because the game is "done" doesn't mean your work on it is finished.