Independent product / 2026
Your everyday objects. A world of their own.
Photograph an object, turn it into a companion, and bring it into an explorable game world.
Explore right here. Sign-in and camera features work best in the full app.
MY ROLE
Product design and full-stack development, from the AI creation flow to the game client and realtime service.
TECHNOLOGY
Next.js · TypeScript · OpenAI · Phaser · Tiled · Convex · Colyseus
STATUS
Playable prototype
01 / CONTEXT
The problem behind the interface.
The idea starts with something familiar: a toy, a desk object, a little thing with a story. ThingBound turns that object into a game companion, then gives it somewhere to go. The challenge is connecting generative AI to consistent game rules and a persistent world.
02 / MY CONTRIBUTION
What I worked on.
- Built a photo-to-companion workflow with structured visual analysis, feature confirmation, generated character artwork and persistent collections.
- Connected companions to deterministic game rules, progression, energy, achievements and repeatable activities.
- Built an isometric Phaser world with Tiled maps, companion selection and a separate realtime room service.
03 / ENGINEERING DECISIONS
The details that matter.
Let AI invent the character, not the rules.
The creation flow translates visual observations into a structured proposal. Confirmed features feed deterministic stat rules, keeping game balance separate from generated prose and art.
A world needs two kinds of state.
Convex stores durable player and companion records. Colyseus handles fast room updates, with signed connection tickets and client prediction and reconciliation for movement.
Make the companion part of the experience.
The bindery, collection and world share the same character identity. An object becomes something you can choose, develop and explore with rather than a one-off generated image.
04 / EVIDENCE & SCOPE
A clear account of the work.
Reviewed the repository, architecture and game rules, then explored the public guest world, desktop companion details and adventure selection, plus the mobile Bindery and an earned crate opening.
An independent prototype. The public world is available without sign-in in a solo guest session; sign in to keep progress. Live multiplayer connectivity has not been verified.
Reviewed September 2026. Screens captured from the running application. Proprietary code and internal source records are not published.