10000000 (video game)

Lore & Background

10000000 was created by independent developer Luca Redwood over the course of a year, designed to be played in short periods of two to three minutes, such as during a commute. Redwood initially disliked tile-matching games but settled on the concept after scrapping other mechanics. He created a physical card representation of the tile board to balance the game, and developed everything from scratch, relying on a friend with a Mac OS computer to build the final iOS app. The desktop version was straightforward to produce since the core game was already developed on a Windows computer, though adjusting the balance for mouse input was difficult. The Android and Linux versions were announced for March 2013 and subsequently released.

Reader's Guide

10000000 is significant as an early example of a successful hybrid puzzle-role-playing game on mobile platforms, blending match-three mechanics with dungeon-running progression. Its design for short play sessions made it a model for mobile game design. The game received generally favorable reviews on iOS and average reviews on PC, with critics praising its depth and hectic pace. It sold over 50,000 units in its first month on the App Store, and by March 2014 had sold 330,000 units across all platforms, earning Redwood about $500,000. The game's legacy includes a sequel, You Must Build a Boat, and its inclusion in Game Informer's top 50 games of 2012 and as Best Mobile Exclusive. The game also features an endless mode after completion, allowing continued play beyond the 10,000,000 point requirement.

Did You Know?

• The game's soundtrack uses the track 'LeftRightExcluded' from free Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 music by Matthew Klingensmith.
• The game sold about 2000 units per day after a review by Eli Hodapp of TouchArcade.
• The Windows and Mac versions shifted the screen layout to landscape mode and added Steam achievements.