Case Study

Bringing Lirik’s Roulette Land to Life

How Fierce Guppy Game Labs partnered with indie creator Sirius Dessalines to transform a promising fantasy-roulette concept into a polished, launch-ready mobile game.

Overview

From Prototype to Launch-Ready Experience

Indie game creator Sirius Dessalines approached Fierce Guppy Game Labs with Lirik’s Roulette Land, a whimsical hybrid of roulette mechanics, kingdom-building progression, and animated mascot flair. Initially scoped as a UI enhancement, the collaboration quickly expanded into a full production partnership. Together we delivered engineering fixes, UX improvements, UI redesigns, tutorial support, and performance optimization—culminating in a fully publishable release for both Apple App Store and Google Play.

Project timeline: March 7, 2024 – February 28, 2025
Client: Sirius Dessalines — Indie Creator & Designer of Lirik’s Roulette Land

Challenges

Where the Project Needed Support

1. UI and Visual Consistency

Early builds mixed art styles and monetization cues, making the experience feel disconnected. Sirius regularly supplied sketches specifying scroll-backed UI, button placement, and color targets—all of which needed cohesive integration.

2. Gameplay Bugs Impacting UX

Players could lose the game without a proper reset, swipe controls only operated vertically, menus fought with map scrolling, and the tutorial allowed taps that collided with audio/UI triggers.

3. Store Prep & Publishing Guidance

The team needed help configuring Apple bundle identifiers, Google Play merchant accounts, and in-app purchase catalogs while staying aligned with evolving platform policies.

4. App Size & Performance

At nearly 190 MB, the Android build exceeded practical download limits, especially for lower-end devices.

5. High Iteration & Feature Expansion

The roadmap evolved quickly—from new animations and zoom levels to grayscale “Upcoming!” tiles for future content drops—requiring rapid iteration and flexible collaboration.

Our Approach

Design, Engineering, and Platform Support in Tandem

1. UI/UX Improvements

  • Polished scroll-based UI that respected player feedback and improved readability.
  • Redesigned BUY NOW, pricing, and cover art components for clarity and visual appeal.
  • Introduced textured buttons, stronger contrast, and consistent typography.
  • Delivered grayscale/gold “Upcoming!” overlays to tease future content drops.

2. Engineering Enhancements

  • Swipe & Navigation System: Enabled smooth 360° panning, isolated menu and map scrolling, and prevented unwanted taps during the tutorial.
  • Loss & Reset Logic: Added automatic restart when cash hits zero, blinking zero feedback, and correct loss audio cues.
  • Economy Fixes: Ensured resale logic honored full-value returns for animals ($1,000), crops ($500), houses ($50k), castles ($1M), and palaces ($5M).
  • Tutorial Upgrade: Scripted taps, added skip support, and improved onboarding clarity.

3. Platform & Publishing Guidance

  • Walkthroughs for Google Play merchant verification and Apple bundle identifier creation.
  • Structured in-app purchase catalogs and explained Unity IAP data flows and privacy requirements.
  • Ensured the client understood every policy checkbox, permission, and submission requirement.

4. Performance Optimization

Selective compression of high-impact textures (animated coins, water, etc.) reduced the build size from 188 MB to 106 MB, dramatically accelerating installs on devices like the Galaxy A14.

Results

A Smooth, Polished, Launch-Ready Game

  • Clean, cohesive UI with improved readability and monetization clarity.
  • Stable gameplay with responsive swipe/panning and reliable loss/reset behavior.
  • Upgraded tutorial with skip support and guided onboarding.
  • Fully integrated legal, pricing, and IAP structures ready for publication.
  • Store-ready assets and documentation for App Store and Google Play.
  • Build size reduced by 43%, improving performance on lower-end devices.

Sirius described the refreshed swipe controls as the best the game had ever felt.

Client Review (5.0 / 5.0)

What Sirius Had to Say

“David Spurlock and Fierce Guppy were a very reliable software/app development service to hire. There was never a time where I questioned my decision to work with them. They're knowledgeable in coding and have a cultural intelligence of the modern silicon valley tech ecosystem which gives them valuable problem solving abilities when dealing with IOS & Google's always changing guidelines and new email policies. My app is the best it could be and I owe it to this freelancer.”

— Sirius Dessalines, Creator of Lirik’s Roulette Land

Engagement: LIRIKS ROULETTE LAND game set up (Mar 7, 2024 – Feb 28, 2025)

Conclusion

Bringing Ambitious Indie Concepts to Market

Fierce Guppy Game Labs transformed Lirik’s Roulette Land into a polished, optimized, and platform-compliant mobile experience while providing world-class collaboration. From design iteration to store submission support, we helped Sirius deliver the best version of his vision.

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