Let's BalanceCan we design a Cookie Clicker-style economy from progression targets?
Instead of guessing every building's cost and production, start with one generator, define when the next tiers should unlock, simulate purchases, and inspect the results.
Explore the showcase in the app ↗Download complete project JSONIn the app, open Showcases and choose Cookie Clicker-Style Generator Economy Showcase. Follow its built-in tutorial. The downloaded JSON is an alternative if you prefer importing the project.
Cursor through Portal, as stored in the project.
Saved economy simulation using the “save_next_tier” strategy.
Goals for the ten later generator tiers.
What problem are we trying to solve?
An incremental economy has multiple moving parts: building prices rise, production grows, and milestone bonuses change the value of previous purchases. Designing each number separately can produce long waits or unexpectedly dominant buildings.
This example starts with desired player progression, then uses Let's Balance to generate values and test whether the results follow those targets.
Follow the design process
Choose a seed generator
The Cursor starts at 0.1 production per second, 15 base cost, and 1.15× cost growth. The early goal is to reach 10 owned around 300 seconds. Check the Seed Generator and Future Progression Targets tables.
Set milestones and unlock targets
Production multipliers apply at ownership milestones. The Generator Unlock Targets table specifies when each new tier should become affordable and its desired production jump. For example, Grandma targets 500 seconds and a 5× production jump; Farm targets 1,350 seconds and 8×.
Generate the ladder
The Generator Stage Designer works on the first generator; the Generator Ladder Designer uses seed values, milestones and unlock targets to solve the later tiers. Compare the generated costs and base production in Incremental Economy - Generators [Run 7].
Simulate player purchases
The saved run uses a Save For Next Tier strategy. Review the economy simulation table to understand how purchase decisions affect currency, production, ownership and elapsed time. This is a modeled strategy, not a prediction of every player's behavior.
Analyze and decide what to change
The Incremental Economy Analyzer reports production share, purchase share, contribution ratio, payback time and progression health. A result is a diagnostic signal—not an automatic verdict on what is fun.
Compare target timing with simulated timing
These are selected rows from the project's Timing Validation [Run 7] table. Negative errors indicate an earlier unlock than the target.
| Generator | Target | Simulated first purchase | Error |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grandma | 500 s | 497.6 s | -0.49% |
| Farm | 1,350 s | 1,322.4 s | -2.05% |
| Mine | 2,700 s | 2,696.8 s | -0.12% |
| Bank | 10,000 s | 10,057.4 s | +0.57% |
| Shipment | 150,000 s | 147,273.2 s | -1.82% |
| Portal | 830,000 s | 814,174.7 s | -1.91% |
Try changing one unlock target in a copy of the project, rerunning the relevant designer and simulation, and comparing this table again.
What does the economy actually produce?
The saved analyzer shows that late generators dominate total production in this particular simulation. This is an observation to investigate, not necessarily a balancing defect: later tiers are expected to be stronger, but designers should still consider whether earlier purchases remain meaningful.
Chart recreated from the actual “Production Contribution Share” curve saved in the supplied showcase, not illustrative numbers.
Try a balancing experiment
Experiment A · Faster progression
Reduce a target unlock time for a later generator. Recalculate and check whether earlier tiers still have useful purchase windows.
Experiment B · Stronger early tiers
Change a production milestone multiplier. Re-run the simulation and compare purchase share, production share and average payback.
Keep a copy of the original project so you can compare the same metrics before and after the change. The website gives you the baseline; the app lets you investigate the full model.
Can your adjustment improve the results?
Open the completed showcase, follow the guided tutorial, and inspect the generated tables and analyzer graphs. Change one assumption, rerun the workflow, and compare your results against this case study.
Open Showcases in Let's Balance ↗Download projectBuilt-in tutorial: Cookie Clicker-Style Generator Showcase. Download tutorial definition (JSON).
This is an independent educational reconstruction inspired by Cookie Clicker. It does not claim to reproduce the original game's complete balancing rules or player behavior.