From Idea to Google Play: The Stickman Rush Journey

Building a mobile game as a solo developer is an exercise in wearing every hat simultaneously. Designer, programmer, artist, sound engineer, marketer, accountant — you do it all. Here's how Stickman Rush went from a weekend experiment to a published game on Google Play.

The Spark

The idea came from watching "crowd runner" games like Mob Control and Join Clash. I loved the satisfying visual of a growing group of characters, but I wanted something faster and more skill-based. What if you combined that crowd mechanic with an endless runner? The concept was simple: run forward, collect stickmen, avoid obstacles, see how far you get.

Choosing the Tech Stack

I went with web technologies — HTML5 Canvas and JavaScript — for several reasons. First, I could prototype incredibly fast. Second, I could test in a browser during development. Third, using Capacitor, I could package the same code as a native Android app with access to native APIs like AdMob for monetization.

The game engine is custom-built rather than using Phaser or Unity. For a simple 2D runner, a full engine adds unnecessary complexity. A game loop, sprite rendering, collision detection, and some math — that's all you really need.

The Hard Parts

Performance: Rendering 100+ animated stickmen at 60fps on a budget Android phone is harder than it sounds. I had to optimize aggressively — object pooling, dirty rectangle rendering, simplified physics for distant stickmen, and careful memory management.

Difficulty curve: The initial version was either too easy (players got bored at 30 seconds) or too hard (they died in 5 seconds). I added dynamic difficulty that ramps based on distance and army size — bigger army means more obstacles but bigger rewards.

Monetization: Ads need to be present for revenue but can't ruin the experience. I settled on rewarded video ads (watch an ad to continue after game over) and banner ads on the menu screens. No forced interstitial ads mid-gameplay — that's a game-killer.

Launch and Learnings

Publishing on Google Play was surprisingly straightforward once I had the app bundle ready. The real challenge was getting noticed. With millions of games on the store, organic discovery is nearly impossible without marketing budget.

My strategy was simple: make the game genuinely fun, optimize the store listing (keywords, screenshots, description), and let word of mouth do the rest. It's a slow burn, but it means every user is a real player who chose to download the game.

What I'd Do Differently

If I started over, I'd build for both iOS and Android from day one. The web-based approach makes this possible, but I'd invest more time in the iOS wrapper early. I'd also add social features — leaderboards and challenges — from the start, not as an afterthought.