Hat Trick Hockey Hearts
This project is is my own creation. It started with a YouTube tutorial for Godot, I took years ago, and then evolved well past that tutorial into three different versions of match 3. I start over from scratch each time and write the whole game and try new techniques. The most recent version in progress is a visual novel. I’ve been writing and editing a couple of fantasy romance novels for years, and I’ve always been fascinated with the choose your adventure books. I decided I’d like to take one of my romance stores and build it as a game instead of a book. I’m using Godot 4.4.1 and C#.
Key: ✅ Completed 💜 In progress 🧭 Stalled 🐞 Bugged
🎯 PROJECT OVERVIEW: HatTrick
Genre: Visual Novel + Cozy Match-3 Hybrid
Theme: Hockey Romance featuring fantasy shifters
Core Scenes:
- ✅Title
- ✅Main Menu
- Settings / Options
- ✅Character Creator
- 💜 🐞 Match-3 Grid
- 💜Dialogue (monologue + 2-character)
- Win/Lose (3-star results)
- ✅About Us
- End Game (character animations)
Key Assets:
- Characters (human + animal forms)
- Backgrounds (local map, US map, venues, dates, workplaces)
- UI & icons (menus, dialogue boxes, match-3 elements)
- Music & SFX (later phase)
Hat Trick Milestones
(What’s your current timeline for release and progress on the project?
Hat Trick Developer Blog
(Most Recent Posts)
Read the Series (click for more blog entries)
Hat Trick 2026 Sales
(As an indie developer how are your sales for the first year a game is released?)
Hat Trick 10 YR Sales
(As an indie developer how are your sales going?)
Socials Discussion
(Do they help with engagement and sales?)
Time Lines
June 2026
Goals
🗓️ Steam Full Release (End of Quarter 2)
🗓️ June Steam Next Fest Demo Release (End of Quarter 2)
May 2026
Goals
🗓️ Week 25
🗓️ Alpha Testing Starts
Generate a playable demo.
Upload on itch.
Need player feedback on the demo.
🗓️ Week 26
🗓️ Alpha Testing Starts
Announce on YouTube, and Facebook.
Announce on discord.
Enter in gamedevtv feedback event for Jan/Feb.
Need player feedback on the demo
🗓️ Week 27
🗓️ Beta Testing – Need player feedback on the demo.
🗓️ Week 28
Revisit Steam Controller options
April 2026
🗓️ Week 21
❤️ Romance Events — Script dialogue choices, story branches, and date sequences.
🎯 Goal: First romance path playable.
🏁Revisit Sound Controls
🗺️ Map System — Add US map and local map with clickable destinations and travel logic.
🎯 Goal: Functional travel and date locations.
🗓️ Week 22
🏁Revisit Color Blindness control, retest.
🏁 End Game Scenes — Add ending cinematic
🏁 About Us scene
🏁 Animated Credits screen.
🏁 Star Menus
🏁 Map Updates
🏁 High Score Testing
🏁 Revisit Translation Libraries and Testing.
🗓️ Week 23
🎨 UI Polish — Add transitions, menu effects, star rating screen, and settings refinements.
🎯 Goal: Smooth and polished navigation.
🎯 Goal: Complete story path playable to end.
🐞 Debug & Testing — Polish, optimize, and balance timing/pacing.
🎯 Goal: Stable playable prototype.
🗓️ Week 24
🗓️ Steam Achievements
Revisit auditory/sound controls
Revisit text to speech support.
March 2026
Goal
🗓️ Week 17
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, snap to grid
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection (Debug) ❌🔗 Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — timer (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — score board (Debug)
🗓️ Week 18 (THIS WEEK)
🎯 Goal: Puzzle + story loop functional.
🔗 Wrap Up Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
🧠 Match-3 Core — timer (Debug)
🧠 Match-3 Core — score board (Debug)
🗓️ Week 19
🎯 Goal: Puzzle + story loop functional.
💬 chapter 1 demo
💬 Dialogue System — Implement choice branching, monologue, and two-character dialogue scenes.
💬 Build plugin for reading twinery files for
💬 Dialogue System — Implement choice branching, monologue, and two-character dialogue scenes.
💬 Build plugin for reading twinery files for importing story nodes.
🗓️ WEEK 20
🎯 Goal: Puzzle + story loop functional.
💬 chapter 1 demo
💬 Dialogue System — Implement choice branching, monologue, and two-character dialogue scenes.
💬 Build plugin for reading twinery files for
💬 Dialogue System — Implement choice branching, monologue, and two-character dialogue scenes.
💬 Build plugin for reading twinery files for importing story nodes.
February 2026
Goal
❌ Feb 23 to Mar 2 Steam Next Fest (FAIL)
🗓️ Week 13
🎯 Goal: Story flow and choices working.
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
🟢Worked on debugging it, UI issues.
🗓️ Week 14
🎯 Goal: Story flow and choices working.
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
🟢Worked on debugging it, UI issues.
🗓️ Week 15
🎯 Goal: Story flow and choices working.
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
🟢Worked on debugging it, UI issues.
🟢Added sound files to a global sound system
🟢 Tring new grid system instead.
🗓️ Week 16
🎯 Goal: Story flow and choices working.
✅ read json for level data. (debugged)
✅ parse data (debugged)
✅ load player data, and save new level data (debugged)
✅ load grid dynamically based on level data (debugged)
✅ area2d mouse event – select square
✅ on select piece 1 – change animation for square (pink)
✅ on select piece 2 – change animation for square (pink)
✅ on select piece 1 – set and save to player data
✅ on select piece 2 – set and save to player data (BUGGED)
✅ on select piece 3 – reset all pieces (BUGGED)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse (DROPPED)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring (Debug)
🔗 Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — timer (Debug)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — score board (Debug)
— gave up on original plan, starting over with a new match 3 plan.
January 2026
🗓️ Week 9
❌ Jan 6th Deadline Next Fest on Steam
— no chance of making the deadline.
— research when the next one is.
🟢💖Setup steam page, pending review
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse ( incomplete)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping
❌🎯 Goal: Core puzzle game play operational.
🗓️ Week 10
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring
🔗 Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
🗓️ Week 11
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring
🔗 Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
🗓️ Week 12
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring
🔗 Match-3 Integration — Connect match-3 results to story events and progress.
🟢💬 Dialogue System – build scene, and chat boxs
Two holidays:
🔥 Autistic Burn Out.
🎆 New years Day
❌ Migraines 4 out of 7 days (weekly).
December 2025
Goals
(Mon / Wed / Fri — 2 hrs each)
🗓️ Week 5
— added additional week
December Incomplete Tasks:
🟢 🧱 Save/Load System: Data validation checks are buggy. Retest and troubleshoot.
🟢 🧱 Character Creator: Scenes and menus created, need to link together, and test.
🟢 🧱 Character Creator: Need to add global/state engine for saving player data choices.
🟢 🧱 Character Creator: Display Character needs to be built
❌🧠 Record video for VLOG
❌🧠 VLOG on YouTube
🟢 🎯 Goal: Catchup and clean up any bugs.
🗓️ Week 6
🟢 🧱 Character Creator: Wrap up
🟢 🧠 Match-3 Core — Grid generation
🎯 Goal: Core puzzle game play operational.
❌🧠 Record video for VLOG
❌🧠 VLOG on youtube
🗓️ Week 7
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — Grid generation
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement
🎯 Goal: Core puzzle game play operational.
❌🧠 Record video for VLOG
❌🧠 VLOG on YouTube
🗓️ Week 8
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile movement, follow mouse (started, incomplete)
🟢🧠 Match-3 Core — tile random
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — tile swapping (started)
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match detection
❌🧠 Match-3 Core — match scoring
🎯 Goal: Core puzzle game play operational.
❌🧠 Record video for VLOG
❌🧠 VLOG on YouTube
Two holidays:
🔥 Autistic Burn Out.
🎄 Christmas Holiday
🎆 New years Eve
❌ Migraines 4 out of 7 days (weekly).
November 2025
Goals
(Mon / Wed / Fri — 2 hrs each)
🗓️ Week 1
🟢🧱 Project setup — Create Godot project, folder structure, and connect base scenes (title, main menu, settings).
🟢 Record video for VLOG
🟢 VLOG on youtube
🟢🎯 Goal: Base structure working smoothly.
🗓️ Week 2
🟢🧩 Scene framework — Add placeholder UIs for all main scenes (Character, Match-3, Dialogue, etc.).
🟢 Record video for VLOG
❌ VLOG on youtube
🟢🎯 Goal: All scenes linked and navigable.
🗓️ Week 3
🟢💾 Save / Load System — Implement saving player data, story progress, and choices.
❌ Data validation checks are buggy. Retest and troubleshoot.
🟢 Record video for VLOG
❌ VLOG on youtube
🟢🎯 Goal: Persistent save files working.
🗓️ Week 4
🟢 👤 Character Creator — Build name/gender/job selector and store data in Global script.
❌ Scenes and menus created, need to link together, and test.
❌Need to add global/state engine for saving player data choices.
❌ Display Character needs to be built
🟢 Record video for VLOG
❌ VLOG on youtube
🎯 Goal: Player setup functional.
— wk 4 started incomplete…
🔥 Autistic Burn Out.
🦃Thanksgiving Holiday.
❌ Migraines 4 out of 7 days (weekly).
October 2025
Goal
🟢 Create Character Scene and functions
🟢 Create new blog pages
🟢 Create new thumbnails
❌ Migraines daily. No significant progress.
September 2025
Week 2
🟢 Starting over in 4.4.1 with C#
🟢 Create new fork repository.
🟢 Create new project, and add to the repository.
🟢 Compile first build.
🟢 Update itch,io page.
Week 3
🟢 Create Title/Start Menu.
🟢 Update website
🟢 Update discord
🟢 Update itch.io page
Week 4
🟢 Create Main Menu
❌ Migraines daily. No significant progress.
August 2025
Absolute Hell
🟢UUID issue diagnosed.
🟢 Fixed existing files, but data still being inconsistent.
🟢 Begin rebuilding in 4.4.1 with C#.
** migraines persist
❌ Migraines daily. No significant progress.
July 2025
Reboot Project
🟢 Health coming back under control. Restarting project.
🟢 Replan, Remap, Review GDD
🟢 Update websites
🟢 Update release date in steam to December.
🟢 Fix Match 3
❌ Node errors, struggling to figure out the problem.
❌ Mid July Migraines fired back off again daily. No progess.
** migraines persist
June 2025
Shelved for one month.
❌Abnormal heat triggering migraines daily. Switched to simpler REDM projects until severe heat passes.
❌ Node errors, struggling to figure out the problem.
❌ Migraines restarted, can’t think to solve the problems.
May 2025
Chapter 1 Demo Published by May 30th.
❌ Fail – Migraines starting back up.
❌ Node errors, struggling to figure out the problem. Settings and scenes not being saved, data in the wrong places. It’s weird.
April 2025
Steam Next Fest Deadline Apr 30th
🟢 New polar bear animation.
🟢 Improved character creator.
🟢 Resolved path and node issues, match 3 grid is loading correctly.
🟢 Updated menus, and testing functionality.
🟢 Updated fileio to work with json.
🟢 Updated player data to work with json.
🟢 Play testing to confirm functionality is consistent and accurate.
❌ 🧭 Missed 1st Demo Deadline.
🟢 Replan the RoadMap, account for chronic health issues.
🟢 Redo the kanban board., start 1st day of May.
March 2025
Goal: Chapter 1 Demo
🟢 Computer partial rebuild completed, Dev PC is functional.
🟢 Bought character art assets on Itch.io to help bridge the gaps in my understanding of character design and animation.
🟢 Bought GUI and Icon bundles on itch.io to save time.
🟢 Rebuilt Scenes using new backgrounds, gui, and icons.
🔥 Autistic BurnOut. No Dev. At All.
February 2025
Goal: Chapter 1 Demo
🟢 Play testing and coding on backup linux laptop.
🟠 In Progress Rebuild of Dev PC. More Hardware ordered + Shipping delays due to weather ❄️
🟢 Continued Digital 2d Art Classes for ipad.
🟢 Continued Animation for 2d Art classes.
🟢 Continued Character designing courses.
🟢 Continued troubleshooting node and path issues.
🟢 Started adding multi language support.
.
January 2025
Goal: Chapter 1 Demo
🟢 Play testing and coding on backup linux laptop
🟢 Digital 2d Art Classes for ipad.
🟢 Animation for 2d Art classes.
🟢 Character designing courses.
🟢 Polar Bear 2d Character, and Animation Ver. 1
🟢 RedWolf 2d Character, and Animation Ver. 1
🟠 In Progress Rebuild of Dev PC. Hardware ordered + Shipping delays due to weather ❄️.
December 2024
Goal: Functional Demo by April.
🟢 Rebuild scenes, and built button action into items.
🟢 Added features to the load and save menu.
🟢 Worked on data management for player.
🟢 Worked on data management for levels.
🟢 Changed data file structure to json.
🟢 Rebuild scoreboard and score tracking.
🟢 Rebuild the dialogue gui, and testing.
🟢 Bought GUI art Assets on Itch.io
🟢 Rebuild settings scene, added in sound sliders.
🟢 Simplified the about us scene.
🟢 Rebuild the score menu to only have the top scores.
🟢 Rebuild the help scene to show input controls.
🟢 Rebuild chapter 1 story db in json.
🟢 Debugged NODE and path errors.
🔥 PC DIED — hard stop. drive failure
.
November 2024
Prototype Deadline 4
🟢 Bought books on creating Game Maps for RPG and DND.
🟢 Made a variety of 2d maps for different game ideas.
🟢 Added world maps into the game.
🧸🟢 Pixel Art Environments: Design & Animate 2D Environments From Scratch!
🟢 Started working on backgrounds RPG style, for animations.
❌ 🧭 Missed 2ND Prototype Deadline.
🟢 Replan the RoadMap, account for migraines, and DR visits.
🟢 Redo the kaban board.
— art has nothing to do with this game, that was an idea I was toying with for Dragon Wizards
October 2024
Prototype Deadline 3
🔥 OS Failure after audio driver updates. Rebuild Dev PC.
🟢 Purchased pixel art classes on GameDevTv.
🧸🟢 Pixel Art Characters: Design & Animate a 2D Character!
🧸🟢 Pixel Art Fundamentals: Learn the Basics of 2D Game Art
🟢 Worked through book examples with analog art supplies.
🟢 Worked through book examples with ipad clip studio pain art program.
🟢 Purchased pixel studio for the ipad, and windows to work with.
September 2024
Prototype Deadline 2
🔥 OS Failure after video driver update. Rebuild Dev PC.
🟢 Play testing on backup linux laptop, making notes of issues, and changes that are needed.
🟢 Installed Godot for linux,
🟢 Installed Github desktop for linux.
🟢 Started debugging and troubleshooting errors.
🟢 Purchased human character pixel art books.
🟢 Worked through book examples with analog art supplies.
🟢 Worked through book examples with ipad clip studio pain art program.
🟢 Retook the Jazza character design class.
August 2024
Prototype Deadline
🔥 OS Failure after update. Rebuild Dev PC.
❌ 🧭 Missed Prototype Deadline.
🟢 Replan the RoadMap, account for migraines, and DR visits.
🟢 Redo the kaban board.
🟢 Play testing on backup linux laptop, making notes of issues, and changes that are needed.
🟢 Pixel Art classes, character design classes, ipad digital art classes
July 2024
Dialogue Tree Prototype
🟢 Create a dialogue db.
🟢 Write chapter 1 of dialogue.
🟢 Storyboard visual concepts for chapter1.
🟢 First art class and attempts at pixel art.
🟢 Build dialogue scenes.
June 2024
Version 1 prototype
🟢 Build the game window.,
🟢 Build basic match 3 functionality.
🟢 Build basic character animations.
🟢 Build scoreboard.
🟢 Build win and loose states.
May 2024
Build the Menu Scenes
Create the basic scenes for each of the menu features the game needs.
🟢 Title
🟢 Start / Main Menu
🟢 About Us
🟢 Settings
🟢 Save / Load Game
🟢 Star Menu (Win State)
🟢 Character Menu (New / Edit)
🟢 Scores
🟢 Dialogue
🟢 Help Menu
