Play it here → Full-screen version

What Is Neon Merge?

A neon-styled drop-and-merge game inspired by Suika Game and 2048, but built from scratch with real Matter.js physics. Drop glowing shapes into the container — when two identical shapes touch they fuse into the next shape (circle → triangle → square → pentagon → …). Keep merging to free up space and rack up points. Game over when the container overflows.

I Didn’t Write a Single Line of Code

Every single line was written by Gemini 3 and refined in Cursor. My job was purely prompting and play-testing. The total time it took to make the game was roughly 1 hour.

Tech Stack (All Chosen by AI)

• Matter.js – full 2D physics (gravity, collisions, restitution)
• HTML5 Canvas + vanilla JavaScript (no React, no Phaser)
• CSS neon glow using multiple box-shadow layers and filter: brightness()
• Howler.js for punchy merge sound effects
• LocalStorage high-score persistence

Key Features the AI Added on Its Own

• Particle burst + white flash on every merge
• Screen shake on big merges (5+ chain)
• Dynamic background hue that slowly shifts with score
• Combo multiplier counter
• Shapes glow brighter when a matching shape is nearby
• Object pooling & auto-cleanup of settled shapes → 60 fps even with 200+ bodies
• Perfect mobile touch controls on first try

Biggest Technical Challenges & How They Were Solved

1. Detecting same-shape collisions
Custom labels on every body + Matter.js collisionStart listener.

2. Smooth merging animation
Instant removal of old bodies, spawn new one at average position with slight scale-up tween.

3. Mobile performance
Cursor automatically implemented object pooling and removed inactive bodies after 5 seconds at the bottom.

Final Stats

• Lines of code: ~650 (100% AI-generated)
• Development time: 1 hour total
• My high score: 36,660
• No install needed

Conclusion

Neon Merge is proof that in 2025 you can ship a polished, addictive browser game in an afternoon — without touching the keyboard for code. The future isn’t “AI replaces developers.” It’s “developers who use AI replace developers who don’t.”

Go beat my score!