POCKET STAR / DEV LOG

Economy & Balance ​

The economy is not an endless inflation sheet. Every round-screen interaction changes a different layer: tapping changes short-term resources, orbit rotation changes production structure, tilt changes temporary gains, and launch changes permanent multipliers.

Levellog₁₀ cost274 Sparks
LevelModel outputCurve meaning
05Exponential growth accelerates late cost
6100Exponential growth accelerates late cost
122,035Exponential growth accelerates late cost
1841,084Exponential growth accelerates late cost
24829,057Exponential growth accelerates late cost

The interactive model uses a common visual language for four curves. Tap and Maker costs are exponential and therefore use a log₁₀ Y-axis; heat is a linear risk/reward line; Badges form a staircase through floored square roots.

Tap power ​

Upgrade cost at level:

ts
floor(5 * 1.65 ** level)

The next base tap is 1 + level, so every level immediately changes the integer shown on screen. An early fractional design left level one showing +1; it was removed because it broke the basic promise of a clicker upgrade.

Maker cost ​

Each Maker cost grows by 1.16 per level. Batch purchases use a geometric series rather than an item-by-item loop:

ts
first = baseCost * 1.16 ** currentLevel
total = floor(first * ((1.16 ** count - 1) / (1.16 - 1)))

“MAX” expands an exponential upper bound and then binary-searches the largest affordable amount, avoiding thousands of late-game iterations.

Production multipliers ​

text
baseRate × level
× TEAM multiplier
× identity multiplier
× FAST CREW
× BOOSTER
× global Badge multiplier

Identity rules create different builds: FIREFLY reads combo, BOT reads TEAM, WORKSHOP reads same-orbit partners, ROCKET reads historical lucky taps, and SATELLITE reads heat.

TEAM ​

Makers on different orbits link within 15°. MAGNET increases tolerance to 20.25°. Each link adds 15%, with at most three counted per Maker. Only stable saved phases affect the economy; previews do not repeatedly trigger tasks or production changes.

Heat ​

ts
heatMultiplier = 1 + clamp(heat, 0, 100) * 0.004

Maximum heat reaches ×1.4 but triggers three seconds of protection. A normal tap adds 0.75 heat; charge adds 4 + ratio × 12, with TURBO adding another 20%. FAN and ICE PACK support a steadier alternative.

Launch yield and permanent multiplier ​

ts
baseBadges = floor(sqrt(lifetimeSparks / 1_000_000))
goldSeedBadges = floor(baseBadges * 1.25)
globalMultiplier = 1 + totalBadgesEarned * 0.05

The square root makes each larger payout require a meaningfully longer run. Historical Badges guarantee visible progress even after spendable Badges are used.

Offline gains ​

  • Default cap: 4 hours.
  • BATTERY Tool: +2 hours.
  • BIG BATTERY Gift: +2 hours.
  • Efficiency: 60% of online CPS.
  • Hardware grants rewards only when RTC and saved time are both trustworthy.

Numerical parity ​

The web uses JavaScript numbers and firmware follows a double-precision path. Migration tests contain eleven browser golden snapshots; C++ error must stay within 1e-10. Display may abbreviate K/M/B, but logic and saves never use abbreviations.