About the project

About NiNjAttack

NiNjAttack is an independent browser arcade and interaction-design project created by Richard Scheffler. It combines a compact web game with an optional second-screen smartphone controller.

Created independently

NiNjAttack is created and maintained by Richard Scheffler as an independent web project. The current build is deliberately small: it is meant to be opened quickly, understood without an account or installer, and replayed in short score-based runs.

The idea behind the current build

The project explores what changes when an ordinary smartphone stops being a second place to display the game and becomes a focused input object instead. The desktop or laptop carries the shared arcade scene; the phone becomes a tap-to-throw controller.

That two-screen setup is optional rather than a requirement. NiNjAttack can still be played directly on one computer with mouse input, so the interaction experiment does not block the basic game.

Why the browser?

Keeping both interfaces on the web makes the experiment lightweight. The game and controller can be opened as browser pages without a dedicated desktop installer or native mobile app, and the QR-paired controller can join the current game session through a link.

The technical details — including session identifiers, WebSockets and the normalized controller input — are documented separately in Behind the Game.

Why the second screen matters

The controller stays intentionally focused: hold the left or right movement button to move, then tap at a horizontal position to choose a throw direction. It does not mirror the battlefield, score or enemies. That division gives the two devices different jobs and lets the larger screen remain the place where the arcade action is read.

Visual direction

NiNjAttack uses a stylized arcade-ninja world rather than historical reconstruction. The scroll-shaped interface, parchment tones, dark red lettering, pixel-like ninja sprites and spinning shuriken create a deliberately playful identity.

The separate Ninja Facts page looks at historical shinobi and distinguishes that history from the later pop-culture image used by games and media.

Current scope

NiNjAttack is intentionally a small replayable browser arcade game rather than a large campaign or account-based platform. The complete controls, enemy behavior, scoring and troubleshooting belong in How to Play; this page stays focused on the project itself.

Feedback and contact

If you find a bug, have feedback about the controller or want to contact the project, use the contact page.