Since submitting Pond King, I have continued working on the game instead of treating the hackathon build as the finish line.
The biggest visible change is the full return to the Pond King name and branding. The new title fits the actual game much better now that the pond has a clear APEX system and the entire match is built around becoming the top fish. The main menu, promotional material, store artwork, and release presentation have all been updated around that identity.
The pond gameplay has also been tightened up. Matches still begin with one player and seven AI-controlled fish. Players gain levels through vegetation, hunt lower-level opponents, and avoid stronger fish. Equal-level fish bounce apart instead of causing random eliminations. Level 30 is the cap, but reaching it does not automatically end the match. The first surviving fish to reach level 30 is marked APEX, while the pond continues until the real winner conditions are met. Only the actual winner advances to Gloomjaw.
I also added a proper gold based equipment economy. Players begin with basic equipment and can spend earned gold on permanent weapons, armor, and abilities across multiple rarity tiers. Boss victories can also award permanent equipment drops. The pond remains skill based because equipment is reserved for the boss phase.
The game now has improved Android touch controls, persistent player identity and save migration, corrected winner progression, music across the major game states, boss victory and loot flow, and thousands of automated regression checks covering the major systems.
Pond King has now moved beyond being only a hackathon demonstration. The iPhone version has been built, validated, uploaded, and submitted to Apple for App Store review. The current goal is to keep improving the game based on real player feedback while preserving the simple core idea: grow, survive, win the pond, and defeat Gloomjaw.
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