What is Gacha-Brawn!?

Gacha-Brawn! is a tiny tower defense game inspired by the hugely popular Gachapon culture in Japan. Gachapon are vending machine-dispensed capsule toys that usually come in collections based on a theme, such as animals or foods. When a user inserts a coin and turns a crank, a random toy is dispensed. In Gacha-Brawn!, you must buy gachapon toys to fend off against evil businessmen who are trying to shut down the arcade.

How did Gacha-Brawn come to be?

In May of 2025 I studied game design in Japan for about three weeks. During this time I visited game studios, shrines, museums, and of course, gachapon arcades. I was encapsulated by the concept and I knew I wanted to make a game based on it. The tower defense format lends well to the idea of collection and placement, and the randomness creates a unique spin on the genre.

What is the Playdate?

The Playdate is a handheld console developed by Panic, the publisher of games such as Firewatch and Untitled Goose Game. It features familiar A and B buttons, as well as a D-pad. The most unique feature of the Playdate is the crank on the right side, which can be used as a method of control for games. In Midnight Drift '86, the crank is used as an immersive way to steer the car.

Unique Aspects:

• • The Playdate console has a crank on the right side, which can be used as a control input. In Gacha-Brawn!, the crank is used to dispense and upgrade towers, which gives an authentic gachapon experience.

  • The Playdate's screen is a one bit 400x240 pixel display. This means that all art has a very low resolution and only two color options: black and white. All art assets must be small but also clear and readable, and can only use black and white.

Performance and Balancing: 

• • A tower defense game typically involves many entities moving and attacking at the same time. Due to the limited processing power of the Playdate, it was necessary to both optimize moving parts and manage entity counts.

  • Measures for optimization include introducing a cap to the player's tower count, simplifying enemy movement, and unloading unused assets.