u/New-Bad-217

https://reddit.com/link/1t3ot35/video/ld1n0nt3ebyg1/player

Hi everyone! 👋 [Download Shape Maze on Google Play]

I recently released my first solo project, Shape Maze (a 100% free, zero-ads polygon puzzle game), but instead of just dropping a link, I wanted to share the technical hurdles I faced while building it in Unity, especially regarding mobile rendering and architecture. I learned a ton from this sub, so hopefully, this post-mortem sparks some good discussion!

Here is a breakdown of how the project was built, the challenges I faced, and the techniques used to solve them:

1. Rendering & Custom Shaders (The Biggest Challenge)
   • The core of the game involves rendering infinite mazes made of various polygons (triangles, squares, pentagons up to octagons). Initially, my Draw Calls were through the roof (several hundreds on larger maps).
   • The Solution: I used the Frame Debugger extensively and wrote a custom shader to calculate the shapes and wall combinations mathematically. Now, all maze types and shapes use the exact same shader (just different variants). This brought my Draw Calls down from hundreds to just around a dozen per frame, while still allowing for a completely customizable color palette system.
   • The SRP Batcher Trap: While testing in the Frame Debugger, I realized my shader broke SRP Batcher compatibility because of some custom nodes and overly precise calculations I was using. Once I identified the bottleneck and fixed the compatibility, rendering speed improved massively.
   • Mobile Hardware Limits: During device testing, I encountered a critical bug: the maze simply didn't render on some older Android devices. It turned out that older mobile GPU chips completely choked on the heavy trigonometry and high precision I was using in the shader. I had to go back and significantly optimize the math to make it friendly for older mobile architectures. Lesson learned: be very careful with heavy trig in shaders targeting low-end mobile!
2. Architecture & Dependency Injection
   • To keep my code scalable and follow best practices, I decided to dive into Dependency Injection. I used the Reflex framework for Unity. If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it. It was incredibly easy to wrap my head around, extremely fast to set up, and it saved me from the usual "spaghetti code" trap that often happens in first projects.
3. Audio Implementation with FMOD
   • Instead of relying on standard Unity Audio sources, I took the time to learn FMOD. I implemented all the SFX and music within FMOD studio and hooked it up to Unity. It gave me so much more control over the audio mixing and event handling without cluttering my C# scripts.

This project was a massive learning curve, from design and optimization to the entire Play Store publishing pipeline.

I’d love to hear your thoughts! Have you guys run into similar mobile GPU limitations with custom shaders? Or do you have preferred DI frameworks over Reflex?

If you want to check out the results of this optimization, the game is completely free and ad-free:

[Download Shape Maze on Google Play]

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=spellforge.shapemaze

[Watch the Gameplay Trailer here]

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEQnYZKI75Q

Thanks for reading, and I'm happy to answer any questions about the implementation!

https://reddit.com/link/1t3opqe/video/ld1n0nt3ebyg1/player

Hey everyone! I’ve just released my new mobile game Shape Maze on Google Play and wanted to share it with you.

Game Title: Shape Maze

Playable Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=spellforge.shapemaze

Platform: Google Play Store

Free to Play Status: Completely free, no ads.

Description:

Shape Maze is a fresh take on classic maze-solving games. Instead of traditional square grids, the entire experience is built around navigating mazes made of polygons — from simple triangles and squares to more complex shapes like pentagons, hexagons, and octagons. Each level feels visually different and requires a new way of thinking.

The game features an endless progression system, so you can keep challenging yourself without hitting a hard limit. There’s also a campaign mode that gradually introduces more complex maze structures. If you enjoy relaxing but engaging gameplay, it’s designed to be both a brain workout and a chill experience.

You can fully customize the color palette using an intuitive color wheel, unlock achievements, track your stats, and improve your performance over time. Whether you’re into puzzle games for focus, relaxation, or just passing time, Shape Maze aims to deliver something a bit different.

https://reddit.com/link/1sztsec/video/ld1n0nt3ebyg1/player

Hi everyone! 👋

I recently released my first solo project, Shape Maze (a 100% free, zero-ads polygon puzzle game), but instead of just dropping a link, I wanted to share the technical hurdles I faced while building it in Unity, especially regarding mobile rendering and architecture. I learned a ton from this sub, so hopefully, this post-mortem sparks some good discussion!

Here is a breakdown of how the project was built, the challenges I faced, and the techniques used to solve them:

1. Rendering & Custom Shaders (The Biggest Challenge)
   • The core of the game involves rendering infinite mazes made of various polygons (triangles, squares, pentagons up to octagons). Initially, my Draw Calls were through the roof (several hundreds on larger maps).
   • The Solution: I used the Frame Debugger extensively and wrote a custom shader to calculate the shapes and wall combinations mathematically. Now, all maze types and shapes use the exact same shader (just different variants). This brought my Draw Calls down from hundreds to just around a dozen per frame, while still allowing for a completely customizable color palette system.
   • The SRP Batcher Trap: While testing in the Frame Debugger, I realized my shader broke SRP Batcher compatibility because of some custom nodes and overly precise calculations I was using. Once I identified the bottleneck and fixed the compatibility, rendering speed improved massively.
   • Mobile Hardware Limits: During device testing, I encountered a critical bug: the maze simply didn't render on some older Android devices. It turned out that older mobile GPU chips completely choked on the heavy trigonometry and high precision I was using in the shader. I had to go back and significantly optimize the math to make it friendly for older mobile architectures. Lesson learned: be very careful with heavy trig in shaders targeting low-end mobile!
2. Architecture & Dependency Injection
   • To keep my code scalable and follow best practices, I decided to dive into Dependency Injection. I used the Reflex framework for Unity. If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it. It was incredibly easy to wrap my head around, extremely fast to set up, and it saved me from the usual "spaghetti code" trap that often happens in first projects.
3. Audio Implementation with FMOD
   • Instead of relying on standard Unity Audio sources, I took the time to learn FMOD. I implemented all the SFX and music within FMOD studio and hooked it up to Unity. It gave me so much more control over the audio mixing and event handling without cluttering my C# scripts.

This project was a massive learning curve, from design and optimization to the entire Play Store publishing pipeline.

I’d love to hear your thoughts! Have you guys run into similar mobile GPU limitations with custom shaders? Or do you have preferred DI frameworks over Reflex?

If you want to check out the results of this optimization, the game is completely free and ad-free:

[Download Shape Maze on Google Play]

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=spellforge.shapemaze

[Watch the Gameplay Trailer here]

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEQnYZKI75Q

Thanks for reading, and I'm happy to answer any questions about the implementation!

https://reddit.com/link/1sxzead/video/2r2xe9w6axxg1/player

For a while now, I’ve been diving deep into learning game development with Unity. Today, I’m incredibly excited (and a bit nervous!) to share the result of that journey: Shape Maze.

I built this game primarily as a learning project, which is why I decided to release it completely for FREE with absolutely NO ADS. I just want to share it with the community and hear your honest thoughts!

🎮 What is Shape Maze?

It’s a relaxing, casual puzzle game designed for everyone, from little kids and teens to adults and seniors. The core gameplay revolves around navigating through an infinite number of mazes built from various polygons (triangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons, heptagons, and octagons).

✨ Key Features:

Infinite Levels: The mazes never stop.

Deep Customization: I built a custom palette system where you can completely change the colors of the background, walls, and paths to suit your style.

Achievements: Lots of unlockables tied to completing different types of levels.

🛠️ The Developer Journey:

This is my very first project where I handled 100% of the work completely solo, from game design and graphics to coding, testing, and the entire publishing process on the Google Play Store.

Building this taught me a massive amount about game development. Some of my biggest technical takeaways were:

Rendering Optimization: Making sure the game runs smoothly on various mobile devices.

Audio Implementation: Managing sound effects and music properly.

Profiling: Finding and fixing performance bottlenecks.

Clean Code: Writing scalable scripts and following best coding practices.

I would love for you to try it out! Any feedback, especially from a dev perspective (design, performance, UI/UX), would be highly appreciated.

📥 Download on Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=spellforge.shapemaze

🎬 Watch the Gameplay Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lEQnYZKI75Q

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy the mazes! Let me know what you think.

https://preview.redd.it/napfgr2j9xxg1.jpg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3278a7398ce37bd64e5b8c9632f4e219dfeb7789