2048 Game
A fully functional implementation of the classic 2048 puzzle game built entirely with vanilla JavaScript, HTML, and CSS — no frameworks, no libraries, no shortcuts. Pure fundamentals.
The Problem
Implementing the tile merging logic correctly is deceptively tricky. The rules for how tiles combine, the order in which merges happen in a single swipe, and the edge cases around the grid boundaries all need to be exactly right or the game feels broken. Doing this cleanly in vanilla JS — without a framework to lean on — required clear thinking about state management and game loop architecture from the start.
The Solution
// what I learned
Vanilla JS projects are humbling in the best way. Without a framework abstracting state management, you have to think clearly about data flow and DOM updates yourself. This project reminded me that deep framework knowledge is valuable, but engineers who understand the fundamentals beneath the frameworks write better code in every context.
