Buffs vs Burgers

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  Take on waves of sentient junk food monsters!

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  Each run is unique! The decisions you make will impact how long you survive!

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  In between runs upgrade your facilities from a tiny local gym...

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  ...into a fortress of fitness!

What is this game?

Buffs vs Burgers is a roguelike tower defence game where players defend their local gym from an invasion of sentient junk food monsters.

Every run is unique. During a battle players recruit different Buffs, make branching upgrade choices and adapt their strategy to survive as many waves as possible. Between battles, players will invest resources into expanding and upgrading their gym, unlocking new Buff classes, and strategic permanent perks and bonuses.

The Inspiration

Visually, the game draws inspiration from 1990s Saturday morning cartoons with exaggerated proportions, bold colours and over-the-top expressive humour. This loud, tongue-in-cheek style perfectly complements the premise of muscular gym heroes battling mutated fast food monsters!

The theming originated from a desire to make fitness feel playful instead of forced. Rather than another exercise tracker, I wanted to create a game where fitness theming and real world fitness naturally contribute to progression in a meaningful way.

How it was designed

The project was developed using an iterative game design process that began with extensive research into the genre. This was followed by a rapid series of paper prototypes and wireframing in Miro to explore gameplay mechanics, player flows, and whether the games theming could be adapted to all planned core loops.

From there I moved on to creating rough mock-ups. AI-generated concept art and UI mock-ups were used to quickly communicate visual ideas. This helped me adjust my designs and after a few rounds of iteration, final polished mock-ups were created.

The Challenges

Balancing permanent progression with run-based upgrades was a key design challenge. The game needs to feel fun and satisfying and at the same time, strategic with planning being key to late run success. The solution was to let gym improvements steadily strengthen future attempts while ensuring each individual run remains fresh through unique Buff combinations, upgrade paths, and strategic decisions on how resources are spent.

What I learned

Designing Buffs vs Burgers reinforced the importance of interconnected systems. The most compelling ideas emerged when fitness progression, roguelike upgrades, tower defence strategy, and long-term gym management all reinforced one another rather than existing as separate features.

I also gained valuable experience in production planning. Identifying a realistic MVP and sequencing development into achievable phases was a new experience. Also distinguishing essential mechanics from aspirational content early on really helped keep my designs focused and ensured the games core loops were strong and achievable.

Built With

• miro