jamallyemin - Stardance

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@jamallyemin on The Variable Game · 15 days ago

made a browser puzzle where you write Python-like variable assignments to satisfy 25 rules simultaneously - think neal.fun's password game but for code. rules unlock one by one and start contradicting each other the deeper you go.

most proud of the destruction mode. when the 45s timer hits zero the editor gets a red caret and starts deleting your code line by line from the bottom until you hit sync. it creates this genuine panic that felt fun to build.

hardest part was making all 25 rules mathematically solvable at the same time. some rules override earlier ones so you keep rewriting the same lines - getting that supersession logic right without breaking the win condition took a while.

to test it: just start typing variables. x = 5 will get you past rule 1. it gets weird around rule 7.

3 devlogs
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Try project → See source code →

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@jamallyemin on The Variable Game · 15 days ago

2h 40m 35s logged

script.js is done. parser reads whatever you type and pulls out strings, numbers, and lists - inline and multiline. 25 rules with a supersession system so later rules can step on earlier ones without creating impossible states. progressive unlock, 45s countdown, sync button, destruction mode that eats your code line by line from the bottom when the timer runs out.

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@jamallyemin on The Variable Game · 16 days ago

3h 2m 35s logged

the layout skeleton is officially complete now that style.css is implemented. i went for a dark, high-contrast, brutalist terminal look to match the puzzle theme.

here are the key UI updates:

custom scrollbar: added a minimal 4px scrollbar to the rules list so it blends perfectly into the sidebar
unlock animations: handled the transitions for .rule-item. when a rule becomes visible, it smoothly fades in and slides up into place using transform: translateY(6px) to 0.
editor grid algnment: synced the code canvas layout, line numbers, and preview panels so the split-view remains perfectly aligned across different workspace sizes.

the interface looks clean now, so next up i’m wiring the actual parser and the rule engine in script.js to make it work. :3

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@jamallyemin on The Variable Game · 17 days ago

27m 59s logged

just finished the index.html skeleton.

as you can see on the right panel, the embedded preview is currently completely raw and unstyled because style.css is literally a blank file right now. looks like a broken 90s blog.

now I’ll move on to style.css so my eyes don’t bleed from this ugly white screen… but I think the structure of .html is fine