Dice & Devises: The Algorithm is a Cyber-Noir Roguelike Dice-Builder. It blends the familiar mechanics of Yahtzee with the strategic depth and exponential power-scaling of modern roguelikes like Balatro.

• Premise: You are trapped in a simulation run by a hostile AI called "The Algorithm." You must play high-stakes dice games to survive.

• Core Loop: Roll 5 dice (up to 3 times per turn) to form poker hands (Full House, Straights, etc.). You must meet a constantly increasing Target Score before you run out of Hands (lives).

• The Engine Building: You use winnings to buy Devises (passive items) that modify the rules (e.g., "+10 Chips for Pairs," "x3 Mult if Gold is 0").

• Advanced Mechanics:

  • The Cyberdeck: An active skill system where scoring points charges RAM, which you spend on hacks like rerolling specific dice or mining gold.

  • The Network: A branching path system allowing you to choose your risk level (Safe Nodes vs. High Voltage Nodes).

  • Dice Bag Building: You can customize your physical dice, swapping standard d6s for Weighted Dice, d8s, or Thief Dice.

  • Boss Battles: Every few rounds, you face unique bosses with specific mechanics, like "The Vampire" (drains gold on roll) or "The Jester" (hides dice faces).

How It Was Built

This project is built as a Single-File React Application. It demonstrates how much power can be packed into a lightweight architecture without a complex build chain (like Webpack or Vite).

• Framework: React 17 (via CDN). It uses modern Functional Components and Hooks (useState, useEffect, useMemo, useRef) to manage the complex game state.

• Styling: Tailwind CSS (via CDN) for rapid UI development, combined with extensive custom CSS for the "Cyber-Noir" aesthetic (scanlines, holographic effects, 3D dice transforms).

• Audio Engine: A custom Synthesizer built on the Web Audio API. Instead of loading MP3 files, the game generates sound waves (sine, square, sawtooth) in real-time code to create retro SFX for rolling, scoring, and alarms.

• Persistence: It uses the browser's localStorage to handle save files, tracking meta-progression (unlocked skins, achievements) and allowing players to resume runs.