Building a Portfolio Game with Vite and Kaboom.js

As a passionate web developer, I recently decided to create a unique and engaging portfolio website to showcase my skills and projects. Rather than a standard static website, I wanted to build an interactive retro game-like experience that would capture the attention of potential employers or clients. After researching various technologies, I settled on a stack that included Vite and Kaboom.js. And the result is a captivating portfolio that I'm excited to share with you.

The Tech Stack

Vite

At the core of this project is Vite, a modern build tool that has quickly gained popularity in the web development community. Vite is a next-generation bundler that offers lightning-fast development server startup and efficient production builds. It's built on top of native ES modules, which allows for faster cold starts and on-demand compilation, making it an ideal choice for this project.

Kaboom.js

To bring the interactive elements of the portfolio to life, I chose to use Kaboom.js, a lightweight, yet powerful JavaScript game development library. Kaboom.js provides a straightforward and intuitive API for creating 2D games and interactive experiences, which aligned perfectly with my vision for the project.

Firebase Hosting

For the deployment of the application, I opted for Firebase Hosting, a reliable and scalable hosting solution provided by Google. Firebase Hosting offers a seamless integration with the Firebase ecosystem, making it easy to manage the entire project lifecycle, from development to deployment.

The Challenges

Integrating Kaboom.js with Vite

One of the primary challenges I faced was integrating Kaboom.js, a library designed for standalone HTML/JavaScript projects, with the Vite build system. Vite's module-based approach and its handling of assets required some custom configuration to ensure smooth integration.

To overcome this, I had to carefully structure my project to separate the Kaboom.js-specific code from the rest of the application. This involved creating separate modules for the game logic, the user interface, and the utility functions. By keeping these concerns separate, I was able to manage the complexity of the project and ensure that the Vite build process could handle the Kaboom.js-specific requirements.

Handling Dialogue and User Interaction

Another key challenge was the implementation of the dialogue system and the user interaction mechanics. In a traditional game, the player would typically use keyboard or gamepad inputs to control the character. However, in this portfolio project, the primary input method was mouse clicks and keyboard events.

To address this, I implemented a custom input handling system that allowed the player to move the character by clicking on the desired location. This required some trigonometry to determine the correct walking animation based on the direction of the mouse click. Additionally, I created a dialogue system that would display textual information in a smooth, letter-by-letter fashion, complete with a "close" button to allow the user to progress through the content.

Conclusion

This Vite-based portfolio project has been an incredibly rewarding and educational experience. By combining the power of Vite, the flexibility of Kaboom.js, and the reliability of Firebase Hosting, I've created a unique and engaging portfolio that showcases my skills and creativity.

The challenges I faced throughout the development process have not only strengthened my technical abilities but have also fostered a deeper understanding of the tools and technologies involved. I'm excited to continue building upon this project and exploring new ways to push the boundaries of what's possible with web development.