Crankoid - My first Game 4 Playdate

Games
1

Brick breaking, reinvented for the crank.

In most brick breakers, the angle is a result. In Crankoid, the angle is a weapon.

Turn the crank and you control exactly where the ball goes after each hit. Let go, and pure reflection physics take over. Every shot is a choice.

Controls

  • Crank — steer the rebound angle

  • D-Pad — move the paddle

  • Tilt forward — turbo burst

  • Tilt back — brake

  • Jerk left/right — shift the entire brick grid

Features

  • Procedurally generated levels — no two runs are the same

  • Multi-hit bricks (up to 5 HP), indestructible bricks at higher levels

  • Power-ups: WIDE, STICKY, SPIN+, SLOW and ???

  • Cistercian numeral system in the HUD

  • Online leaderboard

  • Local high score arcade style with name entry

The further you go, the harder the bricks. The more you need the crank.

4 Now no fancy GFX, maybe later :wink:

ps.: its free if you want

2

Clever idea! I didn’t even realize the Playdate had that accelerometer. I did find it a bit hard to crank without triggering it, so adjusting an angle could cause my level to shift or ball speed to change. But I also could never really figure out the impact of cranking on the angle … i.e., do I crank continuously? is there a directional indicator I’m missing?

I finally settled on trying to keep it still and just tapping the top left or right corner of the device to shift the level to clear things out. :face_with_tongue:

3

Thanks for your feedback!

i will add a little indicator for the crank impact in the next update :wink:

4

new version with crank hint is online :wink:

5

Oh, that’s great! I didn’t realize it had a decaying influence, so the indicator is super helpful. :smiling_face:

6

v01.008 — Daily Challenge

Daily Challenge mode added via the system menu.

Each day, all players get the same procedurally generated levels — same seed, same layout, same challenge. Compete for the top score.

A small DC indicator appears in the HUD when playing in Daily Challenge mode. Daily scores are tracked separately on the leaderboard.

7

v01.010 — Boss Level Update

Boss levels got a full overhaul: 4 distinct layouts (fortress, towers, serpent, vault) instead of just one, each with a guaranteed way in, the old version could softlock. First boss now appears at level 20 instead of 60 (then every 10 levels), so you'll actually see it. New: dedicated "BOSS" HUD label and a dramatic sound cue when a boss level starts.

8

Crankoid v01.012 — Ghost-Replay

NEW
• Event-based submission system: paddle moves, ball collisions, brick hits now tracked as semantic events instead of raw frame dumps
• Submission file size optimized: 724 KB → 41 KB per game
• Daily Challenge section restored on leaderboard

FIXED
• Score processor now correctly validates and displays daily challenge scores
• Event detection state properly initialized after game reset

DETAILS
Ghost-Replay Feature 2 shipped. Game captures only state changes (paddle_x, ball velocity, brick hits) during play. Top scores can now be replayed as overlay ghosts in future versions.

9

Crankoid v01.013 - Combo Multiplier & Ghost Race

Two new ways to push your score:

Combo Multiplier

  • Chain brick hits without touching your paddle and watch your multiplier climb: 2× after 5 hits in a row, 3× after 10. One paddle bounce and it's back to 1×, so the risk is real ... do you keep juggling for the multiplier or play it safe?

Live Ghost Delta

  • Racing your own best run just got clearer. A live +/- readout in the top-right corner shows exactly how far ahead or behind your ghost you are, updating in real time as you play instead of only telling you at the end.