Ghost Invaders Kids Game

A fun, kid-friendly Space Invaders game featuring colorful Pac-Man style ghosts!

Free Play at: http://ghost-invaders.anthony-wu.com

No logins, no ads, Wi-Fi not required.

Development

Prerequisites

• Bun
• A modern web browser

Installation

1. Clone or download this repository
2. Navigate to the project directory
3. Install dependencies:

   bun install

Running the Game

Start the development server:

just dev

Then open your browser and navigate to: http://localhost:5173/

How to Play

• Left/Right Arrow Keys: Move your spaceship
• Spacebar: Shoot projectiles at the ghosts
• N Key: Fire a nuke (available once per minute)
• ESC: Pause/unpause the game

Game Features

• Colorful rainbow ghosts that dodge your shots
• Score tracking (10 points per ghost, 50 for nuke kills)
• Special nuke power-up that clears half the screen
• Increasing difficulty as you play

Building for Production

To build the game for deployment:

bun run build

The built files will be in the dist directory.

To preview the production build:

bun run preview

Development

Vibe coded with a very tight leash.

Tech Stack

Core Technologies:

• TypeScript - Type-safe JavaScript for robust game logic
• Vite - Lightning-fast build tool and dev server
• HTML5 Canvas API - Hardware-accelerated 2D graphics rendering

Game Architecture:

• Object-Oriented Design - Modular classes for Player, Ghost, Projectile, and Game entities
• Game Loop Pattern - 60 FPS update/render cycle using requestAnimationFrame
• Entity-Component System - Composable visual effects and behaviors

Audio System:

• Web Audio API - Dynamic sound effect generation and spatial audio
• HTML5 Audio - Background music playback with seamless looping
• Procedural Audio - Custom-generated retro sound effects using oscillators

Graphics & Effects:

• Particle Systems - Explosion and visual effect animations
• Parallax Scrolling - Multi-layer star field for depth
• Sprite Animation - Frame-based ghost animations
• Dynamic Scaling - Responsive design for all screen sizes

Modern Web Features:

• ES Modules - Clean dependency management
• Async/Await - Smooth resource loading
• Touch Events - Full mobile/tablet support
• Performance API - Precise timing and optimization

See SPEC.md for detailed technical specifications.