Pop The Lock
During my time at Simple Machine, I worked on Pop The Lock, a casual arcade/rhythm game franchise.
Pop The Lock games have 30-million+ mobile downloads and arcade cabinets across America in Dave & Busters.
Players must tap in a perfectly timed sequence to crack the code and “pop the lock.”
My Role:
Write funny captions (flavor text, copy) for in-game items like the collectible ‘hats’.
Captions should read like funny “tweets” and build on the studio’s humor.
Fun, hyper, punny.
Help develop and expand on the overall voice and world of the franchise.
Iterate on gameplay mechanics.
Quality assurance and playtesting.
Some of my favorite captions I wrote for this project, as they appear in-game:
Game art and 3D models by Nao Shimizu, property of Simple Machine, LLC.
Process:
A spreadsheet was created with columns for captions. New unlockables (collectable hats) were added to the sheet as the 3D models were finished, and captions were submitted daily leading up to the launch. This process required me to always be “on” — rapidly coming up with puns, meta-humor, and quirky one-liners in a short space of time.
Re-writes or edits expected back the same day.
This spreadsheet process is also common when writing dialogue, specifically character one-liners and reaction options. (Think: the funny banter between fighting game characters before you hear, “Round 1...Fight!”)
Featured on App Store’s “New Games We Love” & Charted Top #50 in Puzzles
Pictured in order: Booth at PAX East, Pop-up at Kung Fu Tea
PTL Arcade Cabinet at Dave & Buster’s
