Coursework · creative controller

Pixel Chase

A wrist-worn game controller that turns tilt into a ten-pixel play field through accelerometer mapping, Arduino game logic, sound, and a fabricated enclosure.

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From screen prototype to object

Pixel Chase began as a keyboard-controlled p5.js game, then was rebuilt around the Circuit Playground’s accelerometer and NeoPixel ring. The translation required redesigning the input model, feedback, and game pacing for a handheld, glanceable object rather than a browser window.

How it works

Firmware reads the board’s X/Y acceleration and uses an angle calculation to map wrist orientation into one of ten LED sectors. The player’s blue pixel catches a green target and avoids a red enemy; collision checks, random respawn with player spacing, modular wraparound, level progression, and sound cues keep the small interface legible while the game becomes more demanding.

Wrist tilt: X/Y accelerometer readings Orientation mapping: ten discrete LED sectors Game logic: catch, avoid, respawn, pacing, and score state Feedback: color, sound, two game modes, and an idle light display

Controller and enclosure design

The device was conceived as wearable LED jewelry as much as a game. I iterated through paper and Blender enclosure studies, three 3D-printed cases, a battery compartment, and a denim strap with hook-and-loop closure. A slide switch controls sound, board buttons choose modes, and the idle state uses microphone-reactive light to make the object readable even when not in a game.

Why it belongs here

Pixel Chase is a course project rather than a production game, but it demonstrates an end-to-end physical-computing workflow: translating an interaction concept into sensor math and embedded logic, then tuning the object’s form, controls, feedback, and power enclosure together.