Vertical pong. Frustration included.
The Experiment
I wanted to test how quickly Grok 3 could create a working game. The answer: faster than I expected.
Vertical Brick Pong is a modern twist on the classic — rotated 90 degrees with brick-breaking elements added.
What I Built
A simple arcade game where:
- Paddle moves up/down (not left/right)
- Ball destroys bricks on the opposite side
- Progressive difficulty
- High score tracking
Stack: JavaScript, HTML5 Canvas
Key Learnings
1. LLMs are genuinely good at games
Clear rules + visual output = great LLM use case. The AI understood game mechanics quickly and produced working code.
2. Orientation changes everything
Same mechanics, different angle — feels like a new game. Vertical pong requires different reflexes than horizontal.
3. Polish is quick wins
Sound effects, particle explosions, screen shake. Added in an hour, made the game 10x more satisfying.
Agent Quick Start
# Vertical Brick Pong
Classic pong, rotated. Break bricks, set high scores.
## Mechanics
- Vertical paddle movement
- Ball physics with angle reflection
- Brick destruction
- Score tracking
## Stack
Vanilla JavaScript, HTML5 Canvas
## Generated With
Grok 3 (with human refinement)
## Links
- Repo: https://github.com/sergiopesch/verticalbrick-pong-game