Overview

Working title

Don’t Die!

Concept Statement

Don’t die is a level-based game, in each level the player will face a number of enemies but will quickly realise they cannot move! You have one bullet to shoot that bounces off walls up to 40 times. If the bullet makes contact with the enemies they will die, however if it makes contact with the player, they will also die so be careful! The goal of each level is to kill all of the enemies without killing yourself.

Genre

Puzzle / Shooter

Concept Creation Process

The concept for Don’t Die was developed using a subtractive design approach — starting with the core mechanic of a single bullet and removing excess features to focus on challenge, and simplicity. Rather than giving players multiple weapons or complex abilities, the design constraints (only one bullet, ricochets, and the risk of self-destruction) forces creative problem-solving and precision-based gameplay.

The game also draws from the mashup design process, combining elements from action shooters and puzzle games. While the shooting mechanic introduces tension and dynamic gameplay typical of action games, the requirement to predict bullet trajectories and eliminate all enemies without hitting oneself turns each level into a self-contained physics puzzle. The bouncing bullet mechanic takes inspiration from games like Ricochet Kills, while the one-chance gameplay and self-destruct potential produce the tension of games like Superhot or Geometry Dash, where every move could be your last.

A significant influence was the game Mr Bullet – Spy Puzzles which has the same mechanics of bouncing bullets and accurate trajectory calculations. However, the self-destruction aspect was only implemented into a small subset of levels within Mr Bullet and in Don’t Die! It is the primary source of difficulty and intended to be the main problem to solve within each of the levels.

Audience and Competitive Analysis

Audience

The intended audience for Don’t Die! will be me :) along with players that enjoy puzzle games, especially ones that involve precise angles, as that is one of the main features of Don’t Die! Children will be able to enjoy this game as the “shooting” and “Killing” mechanics are not graphic, there is no blood on death and the enemies are not human shaped, however they may find it difficult to complete some of the harder levels as precision and trial and error will be required. Adults will be able to enjoy it too due to the precision / problem solving aspects of the game along with the satisfaction of finally finding the correct angle to fire the bullet on.

Competitive Analysis

Don’t Die! shares similarities with a number of games such as the aforementioned Ricochet Kills and Mr Bullet. The main differentiating features of Don’t Die! are that it has a geometric art style and is not humanoid based along with the self-destruction feature being the prime source of difficulty within every level.

The last successful game in this space was Mr Bullet which was very successful with over 100 million downloads on the google playstore and a star rating of 4.4 with 660 thousand reviews. Don’t Die! will be better than this game by providing a more satisfying art style along with an increased difficulty making it more about problem solving and creating a greater sense of achievement on completion of each level.

Game Treatment & Concept Art

Game Treatment

You’re alone in a hostile room, armed with a single bullet and surrounded by enemies. There's no backup, no second chance - just you, your aim, and your understanding of space. You take the shot.

The bullet ricochets off a wall, then another, then another - picking up speed, slicing through enemies like a razor. But it’s still moving. It hits a wall, sending it flying back toward you like a boomerang of death. One wrong angle, and you’re the final casualty.

Don’t Die is a level-based, physics-driven puzzle shooter where each decision could be your last. You don’t have firepower, but you do have precision. Your only weapon rebounds off walls up to 40 times, turning every surface into a potential threat. Kill all enemies in the room… without accidentally killing yourself.

Every level is a tightly packed puzzle of geometry, timing, and controlled chaos. You’ll feel the rush of outsmarting enemies with a single, perfect shot - or the frustration of watching it come back for you. There are no distractions - just clean design, deadly intent, and the thrill of surviving your own weapon.

You don’t spray bullets. You orchestrate them.

One shot. One chance.

Don’t miss.

Don’t Die

Key features

• One Bullet

You only get one shot, but it can bounce up to 40 times. Make it count or face the consequences.

• Physics-Based Puzzle Combat

Every level is a spatial puzzle. Use angles, walls, and prediction to eliminate enemies without hitting yourself.

• Risk-Reward Ricochet System

The more bounces, the higher the danger — your own bullet becomes the deadliest enemy in the room.

• Tight, Replayable Levels

Quick levels with instant restarts encourage experimentation, learning, and perfect execution.

• Minimalist Design, Maximum Strategy

Clean visuals and stripped-down gameplay keep the focus on strategy, tension, and precision.

• No Ammo, Just aim

You can’t reload. You can’t miss. Solve each level with absolute focus or start over from scratch.

• Satisfying Moments

Each level is a clever challenge designed to make you feel smart when you finally crack the solution.

Concept Art

The artstyle for this game will be simple, clean and geometric. Levels will all be within a rectangular space with various objects and walls to bounce your bullet off of. The enemies will be squares and the player will be a circle allowing you to easily differentiate them.

The following images represent the style of the art that the game is attempting to achieve:

Concept art 1:

Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/8400/Geometry_Wars_Retro_Evolved/

Concept art 2:

Link: https://www.theguardian.com/games/2019/jul/18/how-the-moon-landings-inspired-a-g...

Concept art 3:

Link: https://www.freepik.com/vectors/video-games-pattern/2

Concept art 4:

Link: https://www.pacogames.com/casual/geometry-neon-space

The following images are AI generated images using ChatGPT, these represent what an actual level in the game may look like, with the circle being the player and the squares being the enemies:

Level concept 1:

Level concept 2: