In the initial version, I experimented with players using two boosters, with the angle adjusted by scrolling. Scrolling up placed both boosters at the player's sides, while scrolling down moved them underneath for higher jumps. 

Through testing I found out that the side-ways Booster configuration didn't have that many use cases, it was always either too weak to be useful or too powerful to control.

A fast-paced top-down version where the player controls two guns independently, using a joystick for each one. The guns are capable of both attacking and movement. Firing the guns propels the player in the opposite direction, allowing for quick, strategic dodging and positioning while simultaneously aiming to take down enemies.

While this version definitely showed progress it didn't quite capture what I wanted to go for with this idea. I wanted the precision of movement more of a core mechanic rather than just a way to dodge. 

Linear Levels

This fully 3D approach went through a few variations. With both joysticks controlling the boosters, there wasn’t one left for camera control, meaning I had to go with a fixed-camera setup. Since the boosters are defaulted to the back of the player, the shooting was directed from the opposite end, creating a unique dynamic.

I envisioned the player soaring through a long hallway filled with enemies and obstacles, blasting through at high speed. While this sounded great on paper, the lack of precision in aiming made it difficult to hit enemies and even despite that, the linear level design made defeating enemies feel pointless. 

Boss-centric Levels

The second fixed-camera option I thought of was to have the player always face the center of it's "enemy". From this enemy most of the attacks would originate, so the player is always facing the danger. I also changed the aiming to be a single "barrel", facing the average of both booster directions. This was more intuitive as players could simply use 1 joystick if they wanted to.

This definitely felt like a step in the right direction, flying around dodging the rockets while attacking the enemy's weak spots is exhilirating and challenging.
While mechanically everything made sense by now I felt like thematically I could push it more in a defined direction, while also ironing out some kinks.

Single Booster Prototype

I liked the previous prototype but wanted to refine it further, I had this thought of the player being a spaceship that orbits its target. Every planet would be a bossbattle with each planet having different defensive capabilities (rockets, drones, forcefields, etc.)

I wanted to find out if 2 boosters was crucial for the idea, from playtesting with the last prototype I've found that players generally keep both boosters close to eachother. So testing out a version with one booster would be helpful, it could leave the other joystick free to use for moving the camera or some other movement ability.

What I've gathered is that a single booster is definitely viable for this concept, players still retain that feeling of quick, reactive movements and powerful speed.