Why I'm Building This
I've always wanted to make a game.
Not a game for millions. Not a game that tops charts or gets featured on Steam. Just a game that a small, weird, dedicated community actually loves. The kind of game people stumble upon, get absorbed by, and quietly recommend to friends who "might be into this sort of thing."
That's the dream. A tiny corner of the internet where something I built brings people joy.
The Spark
Years ago, I discovered a game called Legend of the Green Dragon.
If you know, you know. If you don't: it was a browser-based MUD (Multi-User Dungeon) with minimal graphics, turn-based combat, and an oddly compelling loop of fighting monsters, leveling up, and dying to a dragon over and over until you finally didn't.
It was janky. It was text-heavy. The UI was a relic of early-2000s web design.
And I was completely hooked.
There was something about that game. The simplicity. The daily rhythm of logging in, spending your turns, and logging out. The community forming around something so unpolished yet so engaging. It proved you didn't need a massive budget or cutting-edge graphics to create something people cared about.
That game stuck with me. For years, it sat in the back of my mind. A template. A possibility.
What if someone made that, but... better?
The Itch
I'm a web developer by trade. I spend my days building applications, wrestling with APIs, debugging production issues at inconvenient hours. It's fine work. It pays the bills.
But there's a difference between building software for clients and building something that's yours.
Client work has constraints. Stakeholders. Deadlines. Compromises. You ship what's needed, not what's dreamed.
A personal project is different. Every decision is yours. Every feature exists because you wanted it to exist. Every late night is a choice, not an obligation.
I wanted that. I needed that.
So I started building.
Why Browser-Based?
Some people ask why I didn't go native. Mobile app. Steam release. Something with broader reach.
Two reasons:
One: It's what I know best.
I've spent years in the browser. JavaScript, TypeScript, Vue, Firebase. These are my tools. I can move fast, iterate quickly, and actually ship something. I've made countless Unity projects as well, but it's not my thing.
Two: Browsers are underrated.
No downloads. No app store approval. No mandatory updates blocking someone from playing. You share a link, they click it, they're in the game. Friction approaches zero.
The old MUDs understood this. You didn't install Legend of the Green Dragon. You just... went there. Opened a tab during lunch. Spent your turns. Closed the tab. Came back tomorrow.
That accessibility matters. Especially for the kind of game I want to build: something you can pick up for ten minutes or lose an evening to. Your choice.
The Vision (Such As It Is)
I won't pretend I have a grand master plan. A lot of this is being figured out as I go.
But there are guiding principles:
Respect the player's time. No artificial waiting. No pay-to-skip timers. If you have twenty minutes, you can do something meaningful.
Choices should matter. The crafting system isn't random loot. You make decisions that shape your items. Combat isn't auto-battle. You pick your spells, manage your effects, strategize.
Keep it simple until it needs to be complex. Start with core loops that feel good. Add depth over time. Don't overcomplicate early.
Build in public. This blog exists because I want to share the journey. The wins. The failures. The "why did I think that would work" moments. Maybe someone finds it interesting. Maybe it just keeps me accountable.
Where Things Stand
The game exists (PoC), soon I'll be able to share link to the game. There's character creation, turn-based combat, a crafting system, equipment, spells, and a handful of monsters to fight.
Is it done? No. Not even close.
Is it playable? Yes. Surprisingly so.
Is it good? Sometimes. Getting better.
There's a long road ahead. Skill trees to design. Dungeons to generate. Balance to wreck and fix and wreck again. But the foundation is there. The core loop works. And for the first time, it feels like something real.
What's Next
I'll be posting updates here as development continues. New features. Design decisions. Technical deep dives when they're interesting. Honest reflections when things go wrong.
If you've read this far, thank you. Genuinely.
Whether you're a fellow dev, a curious player, or just someone who wandered in from somewhere: welcome.
The forge is lit. Let's see what we can make.
"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." — Some guy who never had to debug Firebase auth at 2am