GrappleBurger

Note: This project is currently in development and planned for release in February 2026. Additional information and visuals will be added as progress continues.

Project Overview

GrappleBurger is a multitasking cooking game designed around exploring a simple core mechanic. Currently in development, planning to be published on Steam in February 2026 for Steam Next fest.

My Project Contributions

Built A Core Gameplay Loop Centered Around Fast-Paced Multitasking
Started Playtesting Early, Tuning Design To Minimize Frustration
Focused On "Juice" To Make Both UI & Game Interactions Feel Rewarding
Designed 30+ Roguelike Upgrades To Encourage Player Expression
Composing A Full Soundtrack To Match Game Intensity And Pacing
Built Scalable Systems To Support Future Updates

Gameplay screenshot of GrappleBurger

Visual Showcase

Showcase of GrappleBurger's fluid and interactive menus

Showcase of multitasking during Classic mode gameplay

Polished menus for selecting an upgrade in the roguelike Remix mode

Remix mode gameplay after obtaining a few upgrades, such as tiny customers & more asteroids

Lessons / Development Notes

Things That Are Working

Focused Core Gameplay Loop
- The central grappling and cooking loop was intentionally kept simple to focus on responsiveness and flow without adding any mechanics. This has made iterating very quick and gave the game a strong personality.
Implementing Player Feedback Early
- Player feedback has been invaluable during development to ensure that difficulty, pacing, and complexity all stay reasonable for new players.
Polish First And Foremost
- Focusing on polish and "juice" in core mechanics before expanding scope has improved the game's overall quality. Both menus and gameplay give satisfying feedback for even the smallest actions.
Strong Player Expression
- By including both a standard Classic and a roguelike Remix mode, players have many options to express themselves and can play whatever mode fits their playstyle. Early feedback has shown that this is one of the game's strongest features.

Things That Need Work

Improving Readability Under Pressure
- Many of the game's sprites are small, and readability can become challenging for new players, especially during high-pressure situations.
- Ensuring that information is communicated to the player efficiently, reducing visual clutter, and increasing pressure slowly is a big ongoing development focus.
Making Upgrades Meaningful
- The roguelike upgrade pool is large, but not every upgrade currently feels meaningful. I'm working to tune individual upgrades to make sure that each option meaningfully changes the flow of a round, focusing on new mechanics over simple stat increases.
Balancing Between Overwhelming And Boring
- Currently, the rate that customers spawn is often overwhelming for new players, boring for experienced ones. We're making sure to test different versions of the customer spawning system to see what works, and what doesn't, before developing the final rules.