Overview

One Hit Wonder is all about getting people to sing along to your catchy tune. Stylised as a strategy game similar to Pandemic and Plague, inc., players attempt to make their tune stand the test of time. Through upgrades including technology and music production, adapt and change your tune so it can become recognisable and world famous.

Core Mechanics

Players start off in the early ages of music, creating a simple melody by moving several nodes on bars to create notes. As the world progresses, more and more instruments and musicians become available. Players choose which part of the world to start from - it may be easier starting in Rome, while starting in Fiji or Australia will earn the player a higher score. As people begin to travel between nations, the tune becomes more widely known. Many world events are realised in the game, so invasions by the Roman Empire may cause people in Europe to learn of your tune, who may keep it and later spread it even further when the British Empire ascends centuries later. Players upgrade different features of their song, and may further alter the core elements of the tune as they see fit. Added embellishments and lengthening the song may make it harder to remember, and it may become more difficult to spread.

Music

Because Music is a core component of One Hit Wonder, the music of the game itself should reflect how the player is doing. The music system in the game is based on procedurally generating a soundtrack depending on certain criteria - including the song that the player generates at the very beginning. This core tune is what the system builds the rest of the music around, analysing the player's note choices and placements, as well as the key of the tune and how fast it is. The system alters the speed, pitch, and tempo of the core theme as it creates dozens of different versions of the tune, and full length ones at that. As the game progresses, the type of music changes as well, so players will hear harpsichords in the middle ages and piano in the later 19th and 20th centuries. Other instruments will pop in and out, adding depth and emotion to the soundtrack to create a unique soundtrack that changes every time a player starts a new game. These unique tracks can be saved manually by the player if the system generates one a player wants to listen to again.

Players spread their tune between regions similar to the game Plague, Inc.