Why I made this game: a student developer's story

It started with a clip

A few weeks before I launched, I saw a short clip of a game called Needle In A Haystack Simulator. It had tens of millions of views, but the game itself was not out yet. I could not stop thinking about it. I wanted to dig through a giant haystack right then, not wait for someone else's release, so I tried to make my own version.

I want to be clear about that: my game is inspired by the clip, I have said so from the first day, and it is an independent project. It has no connection to the Steam game or to games with similar names on other platforms.

About using AI tools

I use AI tools while I build, and I will not pretend I do not. They helped me get further than I could alone. The idea, the choices about what to use, and the rules of the game (how tunnels stay, how hay falls, how the detector behaves, how the machines dig) came from me trying things and changing them until they felt right. I am still learning, and I am trying to understand every part better as I go.

Some people have called the game AI slop or a copy. That was hard to read, because I put a lot of effort into it. I would rather be honest about how it was made and let people judge it by playing it.

What was hard

• Making a heap that does not freeze the browser. The grid, the chunks and the instanced straws exist because my first attempts were far too slow. You can read the details in How the haystack works.
• Making digging feel good. Hay that falls when it loses support, sounds, small camera and hand movements, and a first minute that pays for the first tool all took many tries.
• Saving a whole haystack. Keeping every tunnel after a refresh meant saving the grid itself, not just a few numbers.
• Balancing the money. Prices, speeds and loot odds all depend on each other. A change to one makes another feel wrong. See Best upgrade order.

Putting it online

The game is free to play in the browser on this website, and it is also on itch.io and GameJolt. There is an Android app in testing. Not every platform said yes: one big portal told me it was not up to their standard, and another removed the game without a detailed reason. I learned that a no from one place is not the end of the project, only one closed door.

What comes next

I want to keep improving it: more things to find, better tools and better balance. The most useful thing you can do is play for a few minutes and tell me what is slow, boring or broken. You can reach me at the address on the contact page, and I read every message.