TriNect Project Report
1. The Concept
TriNect is a browser-based casual strategy puzzle game where players connect dots with straight lines, claim completed triangles, and outscore an AI opponent named Nova. The game is designed to be quick to understand, easy to replay, and strategic without becoming complicated. Each move asks one important question: can the player score now, or will that move create an easy scoring chance for Nova?
2. The Stack
The Stack: Vanilla HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in one index.html file, with SVG used for the responsive game board. Local PNG assets provide the home-screen background and game icons. The project has no framework, backend, database, package dependency, or build tool.
The AI Assist: OpenAI Codex assisted with the game implementation, interface refinements, project documentation, visual asset generation, and integration of the generated PNG assets.
3. The 1 Day Sprint:
Morning (Hours 1–3): Defined the TriNect concept, gameplay rules, visual direction, and the single-file technical approach. Built the first playable structure: start screen, game HUD, SVG board, random 16-dot generator, and player dot selection.
Afternoon (Hours 4–6): Implemented the core strategy systems: valid-line checking, line-crossing prevention, third-dot blocking, triangle detection, ownership, multi-triangle scoring, turn switching, and Nova's strategic move selection.
The Finish Line (Hour 7-8): Added the result flow, restart and home controls, help overlay, responsive polish, reduced-motion support, difficulty presentation, home-screen background, and the final icon asset set for game UI expansion.
4. The Roadblocks
Roadblocks: The most challenging part was reliable geometry. The game must reject duplicate connections, self-connections, lines that cross, and lines that pass through a third dot—while still allowing lines that share an endpoint. Another challenge was keeping the game visually clean on a small portrait screen while maintaining tappable dots, readable scores, and a board that adapts to different display sizes. The final project avoids external dependencies, so all game logic, rendering, animation, and responsive behavior had to remain understandable inside one HTML file.
5. Key Takeaways
A small game can feel strategic when its rules are clear and every decision has a visible consequence. TriNect uses a simple connect-the-dots interaction, but the triangle-scoring and turn-based system create a meaningful risk-and-reward loop.
Keeping the project dependency-free made it fast to run and easy to share. Opening index.html directly in a modern browser is enough to play the game.
My final thought: TriNect shows that a focused visual direction, a clear core loop, and careful gameplay validation can turn a simple geometry puzzle into a polished casual strategy experience.