Technical Requirements

Use this checklist as the single source of truth for what every Vibe-athon submission must include. Share it with your whole team so the build, polish, and hand-in phases all follow the same constraints.

Submission package

• Deliverable: One ZIP file named team-name.zip containing your project folder.
• Entry point: index.html lives at the root of the folder you zip.
• Structure: Additional assets (scripts, images, audio, fonts) live in subfolders alongside index.html.
• Static only: Everything must run in a browser with no backend servers, build steps, or environment variables required at judging time.

Allowed tech

• You can start from any official starter kit (vanilla HTML, p5.js, Twine, or React). If you use a build tool (like Vite or React), include the generated dist/ output and make sure index.html can run by double-clicking it.
• Standalone libraries are welcome if they’re bundled locally. Use relative paths (./assets/...) instead of CDN URLs.
• Prefer open formats (.webp, .mp3, .json) so judges don’t need extra codecs.

Network & API usage

• Your game should boot with a regular internet connection, but it must not depend on third-party APIs that require keys, auth tokens, or organiser-managed credentials.
• Anonymous public APIs are okay if they degrade gracefully. If the call fails, the core experience should still work.
• No background data collection or analytics pixels.

Size & performance guardrails

• Keep the zipped submission under 25 MB. Aim for ≤10 MB so uploads are fast.
• Optimise media: resize images, compress audio, and trim unused assets before you zip.
• Avoid long-running loops or unthrottled timers that could freeze the tab during demos.

Naming & documentation

• Use lowercase, hyphenated folder names: team-name/index.html.
• Include a short README.md covering controls, learning goals, credits, and any generation tools you used.
• Licence any third-party assets you bundle and mention them in the README.

Testing expectations

• Smoke-test the exported build on at least one other machine.
• Verify links, image paths, and fonts work after you zip the project.
• Run through the QA checklist before heading to the submission desk.

Keep this page bookmarked—other handbook sections link back here instead of restating the rules. When in doubt, follow this document.