TEMPEST

A zero-dependency vector arcade clone.
Blast the invaders streaming up the web — don't let them reach your rim.

◀ ▶ / mouse / dragRotate blaster around the rim Space / click / tap FIREFire laser B / ZAP buttonSuperzapper (clears screen, limited) PPause · M mute

Fuseballs on the rim can't be shot — Superzap them. Avoid spiked lanes.

PROJECT CASE STUDY: STELLA SAGE

SOFTWARE ENGINEERING & PROJECT MANAGEMENT SHOWCASE

ARCHITECTURE

Decoupled modules: game.js (render loop, entities, state machine) + audio.js (synth engine) — no shared mutable state beyond a tiny event surface.

Fixed-pipeline Canvas renderer: single requestAnimationFrame loop, delta-clamped updates, two-pass neon strokes (glow + core) instead of per-frame shadowBlur for 60 fps on mobile GPUs.

Vector math core: every web is a parametric tube — lane parameter u ∈ [0,1) mapped through shape functions (circle, superellipse square, diamond, bowtie, open rail) to outer/rim and inner/well points; entities interpolate by depth d.

Zero dependencies, zero assets: no frameworks, no sprites, no audio files — 100% procedural geometry + Web Audio synthesis. Total payload under ~60 KB.

Deterministic state machine: title → warp → playing → clear → warp … / gameover, with pause and visibility-change auto-pause.

ENEMY AI MODELS

Flippers — climb from the well, flip lanes at random, hunt the player along the rim.

Spikers — advance slowly, extruding lethal spikes; at the rim they dive back and return.

Tankers — armored haulers that split into two Flippers when destroyed.

Fuseballs — fast, erratic; once on the rim they are shot-proof — Superzap only.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

4PHASES · PLAN → BUILD → VERIFY → DEPLOY

0DEPENDENCIES · NOTHING TO AUDIT

60fpsTARGET · CLAMPED-DT LOOP

100%KEYBOARD + TOUCH + MOUSE

Sprint discipline: scoped to a bounded deliverable (playable + documented + deployed), one action per phase, verified before advancing.

Modular pattern: renderer, entities, audio, and UI communicate through narrow interfaces — each file is independently reviewable.

Compatibility: responsive layout, high-DPI canvas scaling, touch controls on coarse pointers, prefers-reduced-motion support, ARIA-labelled controls.

Quality gates: syntax-checked sources, live HTTP verification after deploy.

CONTROLS RECAP

◀ ▶ / A D or mouse / drag to rotate · Space / click to fire · B to Superzap · P pause · M mute.

TEMPEST

GAME OVER

PAUSED