From a Cat Meme to Monte Madness!

 Part 1: The Spark - A Meme and a Vision It all began with a simple meme: a cat, a shuffled cup, and a hidden treat. 

It was a fleeting internet moment, but it sparked something in me. I saw more than just a funny GIF; I saw the potential for a simple, yet deeply engaging game. My vision was clear: a clean UI, easy to understand, but with a challenge that would truly test a player's focus. As a budding coder, I wanted to build this entirely with just vanilla HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It was a personal challenge to see what I could create with the fundamental tools of the web. 

Part 2: The Stumbles & Breakthroughs - Learning on the Fly My first prototype was... well, a prototype!

 The graphics were flat, and the game felt impossible. I mean truly impossible. I shared it with a friend, and her feedback was brutal but essential: "The cups shuffle and end up in their original positions again!" Sigh. My core mechanic, the shuffle, wasn't actually working as intended. That was a big step back, but a crucial lesson. I took a deep breath, dove back into the code, and finally nailed the shuffling logic. 

The cups now moved unpredictably! But the game was still a beast. The shuffle was too fast, and the UI was, to put it mildly, not great. This led to my first major pivot: I stepped away from the code to rethink the visual experience. I rebranded the entire game, designed a custom logo, and worked to give it a fresh, appealing look. This process came with its own set of challenges like debugging why my HTML wouldn't load a local image, forcing me to learn about external image hosting. As a new coder, these seemingly small problems often felt like monumental hurdles, but each one was a learning experience. 

Part 3: Polishing the Experience - Sounds, Senses & Streaks With the UI sorted (and a little help from AI to polish my  HTML and JS!), the game finally looked ready. 

But it felt silent. Lifeless. Adding sound effects became the next frontier. This was a tough part; it made me wonder, "Is this what professional game studios go through to find the right music and soundscapes?" I explored the Web Audio API, generating music and sound effects in real-time right in the browser. It was a revelation! Adding sound then highlighted another need: visual feedback. The "wobble" effect on wrong picks and the "glowy edge" for correct choices were added to give players immediate, satisfying responses. 

The game was starting to feel alive! Next, I tackled player encouragement. How could I reward skill and streaks? The idea of a "gift round" came to me: a special round with no bombs, just score items and a unique "Gift Box." If you picked the Gift Box, it combined the points from the other two cups for an impressive bonus. This felt fantastic—a genuine reward for skilled play! 

Part 4: The Strategic Leap - Crisis, Customization & Control I stepped away from the project for a bit, facing some personal crises, but even during that break, the game was still on my mind. 

I kept learning, wondering what more it could be. The biggest breakthrough came in the last two weeks: power-ups! I envisioned X-Ray Vision to peek under a cup, a Shield to block a bomb, and Double Points to amplify a win. Initially, these were purchased with your score, but that felt counter-intuitive—you lost score to gain score. That's when the idea for an in-game currency hit: Gems! Now, you earn gems as you play, and these gems give you real control over the game's outcome. 

This was by far the most exciting feature, adding a deep layer of strategy. As the control grew, so did the desire for personalization. I added several thoughtfully designed themes, making sure the original blue UI remained the "classic" branded look. I introduced special cup skins with a subtle gradient depth, adding visual flair. At this point, I truly felt the game was complete. 

Part 5: The Home Stretch - Bugs, Balance & Belief I sent the "complete" game to a few friends for a final test, and they quickly found a new problem: you could activate all power-ups simultaneously. 

X-Ray, Shield, Double—it made you virtually untouchable, completely breaking the challenge! With only a few hours left before my planned release, I quickly implemented a "one power-up per shuffle session" rule and tweaked the dynamic background music to reflect the escalating tension. It's been a hectic few hours, working alone through the night on promo materials, but I am so incredibly happy with how Monte Madness has turned out. Looking back at the journey from that first, broken prototype to the game you see today, it's been an amazing, challenging, and incredibly rewarding experience. 

My goal for this launch is simple: to get 20 players. If I can reach that, I will call this game a huge success. Thank you for being a part of this journey! 

Play Monte Madness now!