DOOMscrolling: The Game

Gameplay & Core Mechanic

• Many found the single-input “scroll to move & fire” concept novel, simple, and surprisingly fun/addictive; some compared it to bullet-hell and classic shareware-era games.
• The lava/fire-wall and health/powerup mechanics were praised as clever touches that fit the doomscrolling theme.
• Some players loved the casual, “time-waster” feel; others wanted more challenge and faster early-game progression.

Difficulty, Balance & Bugs

• Several noted the game becomes easier as weapons power up; suggestions included speeding up the lava or adding enemies from above.
• It’s significantly easier on tall or large screens, since enemies spawn at the bottom; some see this as thematically appropriate for web pages, others as a balance issue.
• Exploit: the fire wall can be “reset” or avoided by scrolling up and down within certain ranges, letting players camp in easier areas.
• Issues raised: heavy/slow feeling scroll controls (especially on mobile), missing momentum, mismatched hitboxes, and at least one crash when dying while collecting a big powerup.
• Requests: mouse sensitivity/inertia options, a clearer pause mechanism, more enemy variety, audio, and more “juice” (effects/feedback).

Live News Headlines & Taste

• The use of live RSS headlines (e.g., about high-profile crimes or shootings) surprised some players; a few found it in poor taste or disturbing.
• Others emphasized the headlines are pulled automatically and not hand-picked, arguing uncomfortable topics are part of life.
• A suggestion emerged to add a trigger warning or notice that real news is integrated.

AI / “Vibe Coding” & Professional Implications

• Many were impressed that a self-described non-coder shipped a polished browser game using LLMs, seeing it as a strong example of “vibe coding.”
• Some found this empowering—lowering technical barriers so more artists and non-programmers can realize ideas—comparing it to past no-code tools like Flash.
• Others felt anxiety about job impact, likening it to the disruption of professional photography by smartphones.
• Concerns: explosion of low-quality AI-generated code, difficulty for weak engineers to judge AI output, and businesses shipping insecure or fragile “MVP” systems.
• Counterpoint: humans already produce plenty of spaghetti code; AI largely reflects that, so expertise in cleanup and design still matters.

Author’s Behind-the-Scenes Notes (from comments)

• Intentionally tuned scrolling physics via a config file; behavior may vary by device.
• Fire-wall logic, debug collision-box toggle, and a secret weapon-upgrade hotkey were described.
• The game was not inspired by another similarly titled scrolling project, and screen-height differences were left in intentionally to mirror real doomscrolling.