Incremental Games

Synonyms

Clicker game; Idle game

Definitions

Incremental game (otherwise known as idle game or clicker game) is a resource management game whose core mechanic consists of repeatedly performing a simple action, such as clicking a button, in order to gain currency. A prominent feature of incremental games is that after an initial time investment by the player, automated currency production is usually unlocked, allowing the game to continue in the background with little player interaction for extended periods of time.

Introduction

The year 2013 saw the rise to prominence of several early incremental games such as Cookie Clicker, Candy Box!, and A Dark Room. While displaying significant variation in terms of their aesthetics and storylines, all three relied on the same core mechanic of continuously clicking to accumulate currency (cookies, candies, or wood in the respective examples) in order to exchange it for other game objects and resources. The speed of accumulation would gradually...