Press Kit
Terrible Focus
Overview
Terrible Focus is something on your phone that makes you want to put it down.
Not through guilt or restriction, but because there's a potato building a home in a forest clearing, and they need focused time to work. Every minute you focus is a minute they build. It's that simple.
- Release
- January 2026
- Price
- Free with optional content packs
- Platform
- iOS 26.0+
- Website
- terriblefocus.com
- Contact
- hello@terriblefocus.com
The Problem
People pick up their phones constantly. Not for anything specific, just because their hand knows where it is.
When you reach for your phone out of boredom, you're not looking for content. You're looking for something to do. A small action that feels productive.
The urge doesn't go away just because you block it.
The Solution
Terrible Focus gives you something to replace the phone-checking urge.
Quick check? Just open the app and see what the potato's up to. Close it again. Sometimes that's enough.
Ready to actually focus? Start a session and work together.
The potato is a craftsman building a home in a forest clearing. They have tools, skills, and ideas for what comes next. The only thing they need is focused time to work. Not motivation. Not supervision. Just you putting the phone down while they build.
Starting a session is simple. The potato suggests two tasks, you pick one, set a timer (5 to 120 minutes), and put your phone down.
The potato works in real-time on what you chose. 1:1 real-time: every minute you focus is a minute they work. Not points, not energy bars. Just direct time together.
Key Features
A Living World
The potato lives their life whether you're there or not. Wandering, reading, sleeping at night. The world changes. Nature reclaims edges, paths form, things get messy and need tidying.
"Give me a minute"
A pause button for when life happens. Your phone unlocks temporarily, the potato takes a break. No punishment, no guilt. Come back when you're ready.
What This Isn't
The potato can't die. No streaks. Two task choices, not ten. No metrics judging you. You're allowed to be human.
Content Packs
Complete the Home Pack and unlock the next one. Each pack builds on the last with new places and new projects. The home never stops being home though. There's always something to focus on: things need cleaning, repairs happen, seasonal activities appear, or you can choose recreational tasks like meditation or reading.
Design Philosophy
Everything in Terrible Focus is hand-drawn. Every sprite, every animation, every element.
The roughness matters. When you see the potato move or a new object appear, you can tell a person made it. It has the texture of something that took time.
The app had to feel wholesome. Not corporate wellness wholesome. Not motivational poster wholesome. Wholesome like spending time with someone who wants good things for you and has no agenda.
That meant stripping away everything that didn't serve that feeling. No menus full of options. No stats dashboards. No gamification turning the app into a performance review.
Just you, the potato, and the clearing.
Why a Potato?
The potato showed up early in the design process. Why a potato? It just felt right.
Potatoes are unassuming. A little odd. They're not trying to be cute the way a puppy is cute. A potato has dignity.
This potato is a craftsman with skills and ambition. They have their own life that continues whether you're there or not. But they're always ready when you are. Tap the button at 2 AM and they'll wake up. No complaints, just ready.
About the Creator
Verena Ortlieb is a product designer who spends most days helping startups turn ideas into products. Terrible Focus is what happened when she finally made something for herself. Every element hand-drawn, no compromises.
Quotes
"Apps want metrics and engagement and daily active users. The potato just wants to finish the table."
"The phone isn't the enemy. It's just that right now, every app on it wants something from you. The potato just wants to build a home."
"This is for finally having something on your phone you can enjoy while putting your phone away."
