When sophomore Gabe Honigsberg was in kindergarten, his mother, Naomi Steiner, nicknamed him ‘the project manager.’
“[Gabe] would have huge construction things that would be all over the whole apartment; they were so complicated,” Steiner said. “He would draw something and then continue on to build his structure proportional to the drawing, before he even knew what the word proportional meant.”
Since then, Honigsberg has moved on to larger feats. He said his purchase of an iPad over the summer inspired him to create an application of his own. Thus came Bubble Dash, an app now sold in the App Store for 99 cents.
According to Hongisberg, Bubble Dash is a simple. Players drag a blue ball from top of the screen to a green ball at the bottom of the screen while avoiding different types of obstacles.
Steiner said that although she was supportive of Honigsberg’s pursuit of app design, she had no background in the area. “I don’t know A-Z about app building,” she said.
Steiner said Honigsberg’s creation of an app did not come as a surprise to her. “Building an app is nothing really out of the ordinary for him,” she said.
Though Honigsberg did not gain his technical knowledge from his parents, he said they taught him other valuable lessons. “I expressed myself while making the app which … is one of the morals my parents taught me … everyone has a creative outlet and I expressed mine through different projects. Right now Bubble Dash is my focus and my project.”
According to Honigsberg, creating an app took both time and dedication.
“It took about one and a half months with coming up with the idea, learning how to program and programming,” he said. “It’s a really big project — there’s over three hundred different files and 10,000 lines of code, which is three times longer then a Shakespeare play.”
According to Steiner, Honigsberg maintained a positive attitude when facing the challenge making an app created. “I would ask ‘How are you going to do this Gabe?’ and his reply to everything seemed to be ‘I’ll figure it out,’” Steiner said. “Writing code seems like his creative outlet.”
Honigsberg said that online forums for app programming helped him resolve glitches and difficulties. “On one of the levels, balls started jumping around the screen way too fast, and it took a while to figure out how to slow them down so that you didn’t automatically lose the game,” he said.
Honigsberg said that before an app can be published to the App Store, Apple must review it for a week.
“There’s always a curiosity about what goes on in Apple Headquarters,” Honigsberg said. “I was basically checking my Apple account every two minutes to see if it had gone through.”
When Bubble Dash was published, Honigsberg was relieved. “Seeing my name on the App Store was … really exciting. I basically ran around the house telling everyone it went through,” he said. “It’s definitely among the most exciting moments of my life.”
After much deliberation, Honigsberg decided to price the app at 99 cents, out of which he receives 70 cents for every purchase. Honigsberg said that he haschosen not to share the details of his profits with others.
“I don’t tell people how many I’ve sold because I don’t know the type of reaction they would have if it was a lot or if it was a little,” Honigsberg said. “It’s always changing, how well it’s being sold. I’m definitely not a millionaire, but it has had some success.”
Honigsberg said the app has even been sold internationally. “It’s a bit creepy — I don’t know how it’s sold in Slovakia or Italy.”
One of Honisgberg’s friends, sophomore Matt Muller, said that Bubble Dash is “fun, addictive and well made.”
Honigsberg’s friend, sophomore Matthew Joe said Honigsberg appreciates feedback on the app.”He always loves to hear feedback about his game and always asks what could improve it,” Joe said.
“When I get positive feedback, it makes me want to make more apps and more levels,” Honigsberg said. “Once you put a lot of effort into something, it’s nice to know that it was a success.”
“Its a great game for all ages, Gabe had made his game very clear and simple so that way there would be no confusion when playing it,” Joe said. “Overall it’s a very addicting and worth buying game.”
Honigsberg said that positive feedback about Bubble Dash has inspired him to continue making apps.
“I’m working on a Bubble Dash Holiday right now, which is going to come out hopefully during the holidays and if that works out I’m planning on doing a Bubble Dash 2,” he said. “If I hadn’t received all the feedback and support I would not be making it.”
Sophomore Inseok Chang said he was surprised at how technologically talented Honigsberg is. “I knew he knew how to because he took a web design class with me, but I didn’t know he was so into game-creating,” Chang said.
Chang said he is impressed by the app’s addictive qualities. “It’s fast paced, and you get really into it because it starts again right when you die and you really want to complete the level as you play.”
“It has been a lot of fun testing people, getting feedback, [and] improving[the app],” Honigsberg said.
He said that marketing plays a significant role in the success of an app. “People should buy this app because it’s really addicting, it’s really fun and if they are reading The Lion’s Roar, they … know the developer, which is pretty cool,” he said. “It honestly is a fun game and people have a lot of fun playing it.”
Honigsberg said because the project was done independently, it required self-discipline. “I just had to be determined and make sure worked on it at least a few hours a week because otherwise I knew it would never get done,” he said. “Now [the app] is successful so I understand that discipline is an important part of success.”
According to Honigsberg, his story should teach people that the community of Newton is full of people with different interests. “In the community, you always know people … but you don’t know about what they do.”
