Procedural Launcher

I am Don Reagan and this is my cozy physics toy: sling a luminous orb, coax it into a shifting bucket, vibe out to Kevin MacLeod, and chase a calming streak instead of adrenaline spikes. Everything here is handcrafted vanilla HTML5 canvas with inline UI so it feels instant on touchscreens and desktops alike.

Loop at a Glance

• Pull the orb from the launch pad (lower left), aim with the elastic trail, and release.
• Gravity, drag, wall bounces, and a procedural bucket layout keep every attempt fresh.
• Scoreboard shows streak, best streak, and lifetime makes. These values live in localStorage so players resume where they stopped.
• Pause opens a glass-panel overlay with resume, audio toggles, install hints, stats reset, and credits.
• Music and SFX can be toggled or rebalanced at runtime; preferences persist between sessions.

Optional Training Wheels

• Toggle Trajectory Preview to see the predicted arc while aiming. It is available until you beat a streak of 5 or anytime after entering the orbit cheat code in Settings.
• Super Easy Mode widens and lowers the bucket and relaxes the rim detection for a laid-back vibe.
• Streak Shield keeps your streak from dropping on a miss so you can practice without pressure.
• All assists live in the Pause → Settings panel alongside the cheat code input.

Layout Map & Mod Zones

I keep everything in a single script.js for now. If you are tinkering, here is the mental map:

• state (top of script.js) defines physics, UI references, persisted stats, and audio prefs. Tweak gravity, drag, or UI copy safely here.
• rebuildBackdrop() and randomizeBucket() are the best hooks for cosmetic experimentation (colors, gradients, bucket styles). They are self-contained.
• Pointer handling (pointerdown → launchBall) plus updateBall() control the physics. Unless you plan to overhaul core gameplay, leave updateBall() and collideBallLine() alone; a tiny typo here will break bounces and detection.
• Audio helpers (playSuccessSound, playCollisionSound, startMusic, etc.) are modular. It is safe to swap tracks or integrate another playlist loader without touching physics.
• UI helpers (createMenuButton, createSliderRow, etc.) render the pause/settings overlay. They are good spots to add more controls if you respect the shared styling object.
• The service layer is intentionally minimal—storage wraps localStorage, and there is no build tooling. Keep edits simple and vanilla.

Persistence, Audio, and Scaling

• Stats keys: launcher_best, launcher_lifetime, launcher_music_enabled, launcher_sfx_enabled, and matching volume keys. Back up or migrate them if you ever change the prefix.
• Music lives in music/Calming. Playback is sequential shuffle; if a browser blocks autoplay the next pointer/tap unlocks the audio context.
• Canvas resizes with resizeCanvas() and enforces a responsive UI scale so HUD, pause badge, and instructions remain legible on small displays. Stick with those helpers when adding UI instead of setting arbitrary widths.

Install and Play Anywhere (Current State)

There are no native binaries. Install it as a Progressive Web App (PWA) from ronnie-reagan.github.io/procedural_launcher:

Windows and Linux (Chrome or Edge)

1. Open the site in Chrome or Edge.
2. Watch for the install icon in the omnibox (or use the ⋮ menu → Cast, Save and Share → Install page as app).
3. Confirm to pin it to the Start menu or taskbar.

Chromebook

1. Visit the site in Chrome.
2. Tap the install chip in the address bar or use the ⋮ menu → Install Procedural Launcher.
3. The app lands in the launcher shelf and works offline once the assets are cached (see roadmap below).

Android (Chrome)

1. Navigate to the site, tap the ⋮ menu.
2. Choose Add to Home Screen → confirm.
3. The launcher icon behaves like any other app shortcut.

iOS / iPadOS (Safari)

1. Open the site in Safari.
2. Tap the share icon → Add to Home Screen.
3. Confirm; the app installs full screen.

Offline ability is being tracked in AUDIT_REPORT.md under “Offline/PWA rollout plan.”

Customizing or Contributing

• Safe edits: HUD copy, instruction text, button labels, playlists, default physics constants, and color palettes. These areas are labeled in script.js.
• Handle with care: updateBall, collideBallLine, persistence helpers, and DOM-creation bootstrapping near the top of the file. They are intertwined with input handling and scoring.
• Do not touch unless you are refactoring: the pointer capture logic, the tick loop, and the stat/badge updates. Bugs here lock the UI or tank performance.
• notes.md remains my scratch pad for retrospective thoughts; feel free to append structured notes there after syncing with the audit report.

Documentation & Planning

• AUDIT_REPORT.md — exhaustive review, logic findings, future topics, player questions, and rollout plans written from my perspective.
• notes.md — rolling diary of experiments, player feedback, and legacy todos.
• music/credits.md — Kevin MacLeod attribution list.

Credits

• Design, code, artwork: Don Reagan
• Testing: Gaymer, Tunaz_420, ɮǟʀɮաɨʀɛ, Nishi Billi
• Music: Kevin MacLeod (Creative Commons BY 3.0)