Through A Thousand Eyes (also known as Spuder Game) is a passion project that combines my love for incremental games and deep RPG mechanics. What started as a simple idle clicking prototype has evolved into a complex spider-themed adventure with multiple interconnected systems, strategic combat, and hundreds of hours of content.
When I set out to create this game, I wanted to address what I felt were limitations in existing incremental games. Many idle games offer simple progression curves with minimal player agency - you click, numbers go up, and choices are limited to "which upgrade do I buy next?" While that can be satisfying, I wanted something deeper.
Through A Thousand Eyes aims to blend the satisfying progression of idle games with the strategic depth of tactical RPGs. Every system in the game - from the quality variance on allies to the mutation tree pathing to party positioning in combat - creates meaningful decisions. Players who engage deeply with the systems and think strategically are rewarded with faster progression and the ability to overcome challenges that would wall more casual approaches.
At the same time, I wanted to preserve the accessibility that makes idle games special. You can play actively for maximum efficiency, or let the game run idle and make steady progress. You can dive deep into optimization, or casually click and enjoy watching your spider grow stronger. The game accommodates multiple playstyles without forcing any particular approach.
The spider theme emerged from wanting something distinctive in a genre dominated by fantasy heroes, space exploration, and abstract number growth. Spiders are fascinating creatures - patient hunters, master crafters, adaptable survivors. These traits map perfectly onto incremental game design: patience for idle progression, crafting through the Lab system, adaptation through diverse builds and strategies.
The name "Through A Thousand Eyes" reflects the perspective shift of playing as Arachne and her recruited spider allies. As your party grows, you're literally seeing battles through dozens of spider eyes. It also hints at the long-term nature of the game - through thousands of levels, thousands of battles, you witness an epic journey of conquest across multiple kingdoms.
Plus, there weren't many spider-themed incremental games, so it felt like an untapped niche. The theme allows for creative enemy designs (humans, undead, fairies, etc. all have different relationships with spiders), interesting mechanics (web building, venom, etc.), and a cohesive aesthetic that ties all systems together.
Development began with the core clicking mechanic and basic experience system. This foundation needed to feel satisfying - the click-to-gain-EXP loop is what players experience first, so it had to be polished. Early iterations tested different click cooldowns, combo systems, and upgrade curves to find the right balance between active engagement and idle progression.
Combat was the first major expansion beyond basic clicking. Designing the turn-based system with attack speed timers, status effects, and positioning took considerable iteration. Early versions had simpler combat, but playtesters found it too automated - battles resolved quickly without much player input. The current system with its 20+ status effects, targeting priorities, and party composition puzzles emerged from feedback that combat needed more strategic depth.
The Kingdom system came next, providing structure for content expansion. Rather than endless procedurally-generated encounters, I wanted handcrafted enemy compositions that teach mechanics and reward mastery. Each kingdom introduces new enemy types with distinct abilities, creating a difficulty curve that feels fair but challenging. The Training Kingdom teaches basics, the Human Kingdom demands optimization, and the Undead Kingdom requires adapting to new mechanics like Decay and Death Mark.
Later systems like the Lab, Mutations, and Evolutions addressed endgame progression. As players reached higher levels, I wanted to ensure there were always new goals and ways to increase power. The Lab provides a long-term crafting project with Chimera creation. Mutations and Evolutions add permanent customization that defines your character. These systems work together to create a progression loop that remains engaging even after hundreds of hours.
Building a browser-based game with Godot Engine presented unique challenges. Godot's HTML5 export is powerful but requires optimization to maintain smooth performance. Large save files with hundreds of allies and components needed compression. Combat calculations with complex status effect interactions needed to be efficient to avoid lag during battles with multiple enemies and party members all applying DoTs and buffs simultaneously.
Firebase integration for cloud saves added another layer of complexity. Synchronizing saves across devices, handling offline play, preventing save corruption, and ensuring security all required careful implementation. The save system rewrite in version 0.8.1 addressed many early issues, dramatically improving load times and stability for players with extensive collections.
Balancing is an ongoing technical challenge. With so many interconnected systems - skill points affecting combat, combat yielding experience, experience unlocking mutations, mutations improving combat effectiveness - small balance changes can have cascading effects. Extensive spreadsheets track progression curves, DPS calculations, and optimal strategies to ensure the game remains challenging but fair throughout all stages of progression.
Player feedback has been invaluable throughout development. Early testers identified balance issues, suggested quality-of-life improvements, and helped refine systems that were too complex or too simple. The bleed diminishing returns in version 0.7.3 came from community feedback about infinite scaling. The Lab filtering and pagination in version 0.8.3 addressed player requests for better collection management.
I'm committed to maintaining open communication with the community. Bug reports are prioritized and typically fixed quickly. Feature requests are considered carefully - not everything can or should be implemented, but good ideas that align with the game's vision often make it in. Balance discussions help me understand which parts of the game feel too easy, too hard, or just right at different progression stages.
As the community grows, I hope to see player-created content emerge: strategy guides, build calculators, kingdom walkthroughs, and theorycrafting discussions. These contributions enrich the game beyond what I can create alone and help new players get started more easily.
Through A Thousand Eyes draws inspiration from many sources:
Development continues with ambitious plans for future content:
The vision is for Through A Thousand Eyes to continue growing with regular updates, always providing new content for veteran players while remaining accessible to newcomers. Each update should add meaningful content rather than just inflating numbers or adding filler.
Thank you for playing Through A Thousand Eyes. Whether you're a dedicated player who's prestiged multiple times and conquered every kingdom, or a newcomer just starting to click your first spider egg, I appreciate you giving this game your time. Indie game development is challenging, and player support makes it possible to continue creating and improving the experience.
If you encounter bugs, have suggestions, or just want to share your experiences, please reach out through the contact page. Your feedback directly shapes the game's future. If you enjoy the game, consider sharing it with friends who might appreciate complex incremental RPGs - word of mouth is how indie games find their audience.
Here's to many more updates, kingdoms, and hours of spider-based conquest. May your allies roll high quality, your mutations path efficiently, and your Chimeras be perfectly crafted.
- The Developer
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