JavaScript Game Development Guidelines

Follow these rules to ensure clean, efficient, and scalable JavaScript game development:

1. Modular Code Structure

• Break code into modules (e.g., input handling, physics, rendering).
• Use ES6 modules or bundlers (like Webpack) for clean separation.
• Avoid global variables; use scoped imports/exports.
• Group related functionality in reusable classes or objects.

2. Game Loop Design

• Use requestAnimationFrame() for optimal rendering.
• Separate update and render logic.
• Maintain a consistent delta time (dt) for frame-independent movement.
• Avoid heavy computations in the render loop; offload to workers if needed.

3. Entity-Component-System (ECS) Pattern

• Favor composition over inheritance for game objects.
• Define components as data containers (e.g., position, velocity).
• Implement systems to operate on entities with specific components.
• Use ECS for scalability and maintainability in complex games.

4. Input Handling

• Use event listeners for keyboard/mouse/gamepad input.
• Maintain an input state object updated by events.
• Decouple input from game logic; translate input to commands/actions.
• Allow customizable key bindings for accessibility.

5. Asset Management

• Preload assets (images, audio, spritesheets) before gameplay.
• Use loading screens and progress indicators.
• Organize assets by type and usage (e.g., UI, enemies, backgrounds).
• Release unused assets and nullify references to help garbage collection.

6. Performance Optimization

• Use object pooling to reuse frequently created/destroyed objects.
• Minimize DOM manipulation; prefer canvas/WebGL for rendering.
• Profile with DevTools; optimize bottlenecks in update/render cycles.
• Reduce memory leaks by cleaning up intervals, listeners, and unused objects.

7. Rendering Best Practices

• Use CanvasRenderingContext2D or WebGL depending on visual complexity.
• Clear and redraw each frame; do not rely on overlapping draw calls.
• Batch draw calls where possible to improve rendering performance.
• Optimize sprite sheet usage to minimize draw calls.

8. State Management

• Define clear game states (e.g., menu, playing, paused, game over).
• Use a state machine pattern to manage transitions and logic.
• Isolate logic by state to avoid conditional sprawl.
• Allow easy state resetting or switching for reusability.

9. Debugging and Logging

• Use structured logging and meaningful error messages.
• Include developer toggles (e.g., show FPS, hitboxes, debug overlays).
• Create a debug mode with keyboard shortcuts for testing.
• Remove or disable verbose logging in production builds.

10. Testing and Version Control

• Write unit tests for game logic where possible.
• Use Git with descriptive commits and branches for features/bugs.
• Regularly back up game progress and development branches.
• Perform playtesting to identify usability and performance issues.

Bonus: User Experience (UX)

• Provide audio/visual feedback for player actions.
• Implement responsive UI that scales with screen/device.
• Save user preferences (e.g., volume, controls) in local storage.
• Include a tutorial or help screen to ease player onboarding.