Tap-to-move queue system: The front shooter in a queue can be tapped to move to a target Doc position.

Auto shooting: Once on a doc, a shooter continuously fires toward available front-row cubes matching its color.

Column-based cube advancement: Destroying cubes causes front-row cubes to shift forward deterministically by column/Z ordering.

Triple merge: Three same-color shooters on docs merge into one shooter (ammo combined), with left/right shooters removed.

Linked shooters (special mechanic): Two shooters can be linked; they move together as a pair, share a visual connection (cylinder), and are excluded from the triple-merge behavior.

Linked shooters with pairing rules

• Same-queue or cross-queue linked movement supported

• Linked pair share the “move out” side and have synchronized behavior

• Linked shooters excluded from triple-merge logic

• Dynamic cylinder visualization connects linked shooters

Reactive level onboarding

• Instruction panel system with level-specific guidance (Levels 1, 4, 5, 8, 16)

• Highlight + breathing effects show the intended target shooters based on queue eligibility and doc shooting state

Theme + color system

• Scriptable material mapping via ReferenceManager

• Level theme tinting 

• Color expansion support (e.g., Pink/SkyBlue/Purple)

Gameplay UI

• Progress bar, level complete screen, hard-level icon

• Level failed screen with “Level X” text and Try Again restart flow

Level fail logic (game state aware)

• Level failure triggers only when Doc is full and no shooter can shoot (based on whether shooters still have targets/ammo potential)

Unity/C# architecture with clear managers

• CubeManager (cube column detection, front-row selection, cube destruction flow)

• MoveQueue + queue data (tap rules, shooter-to-doc assignment)

• PlayerShooter + PlayerMovement (shooting loop and transitions)

• MergeManager (merge animation + ammo consolidation)

• DocManager (doc slot state, linked/shootable shooter evaluation)

• LevelManager + UIManager (level lifecycle, win/fail UI, theming, instructions)

Deterministic spatial logic

• Columns are built by X and cubes are ordered by Z for consistent front-row behavior

Tween-driven animations

• DOTween for jumps, rotation, punch recoil feedback, UI transitions, and merge sequences

Performance patterns

• Projectile object pooling (ObjectPool) to reduce instantiation costs

UX feedback systems

• Highlight Plus integration for target emphasis

• Breathing effect component controlled to reflect “ready to move / shooting” state

Modular gameplay architecture (manager separation for maintainability)

State-driven gameplay logic (queue → doc → shooting → merge → fail/win)

Data-driven selection algorithms (front-row selection by column/Z ordering)

Animation & feedback integration (DOTween + recoil/punch/merge effects)

UI/UX implementation for onboarding (instruction panels + visual guidance)

Special mechanic design (linked shooters with synchronized behavior and visual connection)

Debug-friendly systems (clear fail/merge conditions and deterministic cube movement)

Implemented a full hyper-casual loop: queue tapping → doc shooting → cube-column progression → triple merge

Added a linked-shooter system with synchronized movement, cylinder visualization, and merge exclusion

Built a reusable instruction panel framework (Levels 1/4/5/8/16) with highlight + breathing guidance

Designed robust level win/fail UX, including “Level X” failed screen and Try Again restart logic

Used performant gameplay tech: object pooling + DOTween for responsive feel