Development Plan
Hatch Legends Roadmap
This roadmap is based on the current internal build checklist. It tracks the path from locked foundations and the first playable core loop to events, economy, stability, and final launch polish.
Phase 0Hard Lock
Foundation
Lock the design rules before heavy implementation begins.
- Define rarity tiers, egg types, and essence interactions
- Set idle system rules, reward types, and progression logic
- Prepare config data for creatures, eggs, essences, idle rewards, and XP
- Finalize validation, evolution chain checks, and data integrity rules
Phase 1Core Loop
Skeleton of the Game
Get the first end-to-end loop working in a playable form.
- Build hunt command and egg reward flow
- Implement hatch command and creature generation
- Integrate pity logic into the first loop
- Reach a clean hunt → egg → hatch pipeline
Phase 2Data Layer
Core Systems
Stability, anti-bug protection, and backend control systems.
- Player data layers for codex, inventory, creature instances, and rewards
- Transaction, action lock, retry, rollback, and idempotency protections
- Feature flags and server-side validation
- Cooldown and activity tracking for time systems
Phase 3Feedback
Testing, Logging, and Feel
Make the game readable, tunable, and safer to iterate.
- Logging and analytics for drops, progression, and player behavior
- Error handling and invalid-state coverage
- Cleaner response messaging
- Simulation tools for hatch balance and pacing
Phase 4Growth
Progression Systems
Add the feeling of long-term creature and player growth.
- XP gain, leveling rules, and progression milestones
- Evolution targets for stage 2 and stage 3 forms
- Duplicate handling and conversion rules
- Player progression tracking across the whole loop
MilestoneFirst Playable
Playable Core Build
This is the first major internal milestone: a working version where players can hunt, hatch, build a creature collection, level their team, and evolve creatures through real progression.
HuntHatchCreaturesLevelEvolve
Phase 5Retention
Engagement Systems
Build the loops that make the game feel rewarding over time.
- Daily rewards, streaks, cooldowns, and onboarding
- Starter rewards and first-time player structure
- Full idle reward calculation with a 6-hour cap
- Idle claim flow, balancing, and logging
Phase 6Content
Content and Balancing
Expand the game's collectible universe and pace it well.
- Add the full creature roster and their evolutions
- Upload and connect all creature assets
- Balance egg drop rates and rarity pacing
- Align reward scaling and active vs idle economy
Phase 7Depth
System Expansion
Introduce richer long-form systems beyond the core collection loop.
- Arena auto-battles
- Trials of Aether progression challenge structure
- Incubator systems
- Reusable event framework foundations
Phase 8Live Game
Events and Economy
Move toward a more complete live-service economy layer.
- Shop and currency systems
- Limited-time events and premium incubator structure
- Bundles, offers, and event modifiers
- More advanced live content pacing
Phase 9Safety
Security and Reliability
Make the game safe, recoverable, and maintainable.
- Anti-exploit, rate limiting, and spam prevention
- Backups, data checks, migrations, and safe retry handling
- Admin and debug command tooling
- Performance tuning and version control systems
Phase 10Launch Prep
Final Polish
Finish presentation, testing, and launch-readiness.
- Final balancing passes and tester feedback
- Presentation polish and messaging cleanup
- Launch prep and release confidence checks
- Make the game feel cohesive, stable, and ready to share
Build Philosophy
The current plan is intentionally structured. Instead of jumping straight into every feature at once, Hatch Legends is being built from rules and reliability outward: lock the foundations, ship the core loop, prove progression works, then expand into depth systems, live content, economy, and polish.
This page is based on the current internal build checklist and will evolve as the project shifts from design lock into implementation and content expansion.
