App
Start claiming territory in your neighbourhood
Begin with the streets you already walk. Colour them in, close a few blocks, then expand one street at a time.
Why Patch territory never expires on dog walks
Every territory game we looked at had a decay timer. Claim something, and it slowly bleeds back to neutral unless you return. It's the obvious mechanic. We built it, played it for three weeks, and took it out.
What decay actually does
On paper, decay keeps the map alive. In practice it does something meaner: it turns a walk you enjoyed into a debt you owe.
We noticed it in ourselves first. Checking the app on a Sunday night, seeing ground fading, and feeling that low-grade dread of a chore. Not "I'd like to go for a walk." More like "I have to go top that up." Bad thing to attach to time outside with your dog.
There's also the fairness problem. Decay punishes anyone whose week isn't tidy. Shift work, illness, a dog recovering from surgery. The map doesn't know why you were away. It just takes.
What we did instead
Ground you claim stays yours indefinitely. Nothing fades. Nothing expires. The only way to lose a patch is for another dog to actually walk it.
That one change did three things we didn't fully anticipate:
- It made the map a record. Territory you claimed in March is still there in November. Walk somewhere on holiday and it stays on your map as a small permanent souvenir.
- It made rivalry real. When ground changes hands, a person did that. There's someone at the other end of it who was out on your street.
- It made coming back optional. You walk because you want to, and the map is there when you get back.
The obvious objection
Doesn't the map fill up and stop being interesting?
Less than you'd think. Cities are enormous, most people walk a small fraction of theirs, and contested ground piles up where you'd expect: parks, high streets, the routes everyone uses. The busy bits stay busy. The quiet bits stay quiet, and holding them costs you nothing.
What we gave up
We lost a lever. Decay is a very reliable way to drive daily opens, and we don't have it. Our numbers are probably worse for it.
We're fine with that. An app that makes you feel guilty for missing a day isn't one we'd want pointed at our own dogs.