[Shell Shockers](Shellshock.io) is a multiplayer FPS game developed by [Blue Wizard Digital](https://bluewizard.com/). It's been online for a few years but has been progressively updated since its launch. 

Shell Shockers could be described as the Counter Strike of the egg world. Cartoon style weapon-wielding eggs face off in one of four game modes where the aim is to shatter your opponents with bullets and bombs. Shell Shocker is a dangerously addictive game. One second you're just trying it out, the next an hour has passed. 

![shell-shockers-gameplay-gif.gif](/uploads/shell_shockers_gameplay_gif_bc930493e7.gif)

Although the game keeps a perfect 60 frames a second on my system, it does send the fan spinning. The game is built using v3 of the [Babylon.js](https://www.babylonjs.com/) graphics engine which has recently added support for webGPU in V5. The site itself makes use of [Vue.js](https://vuejs.org/). Try it out here: [shellshockers.io](Shellshock.io). 

Shell Shockers: An eggcelent first person shooter

## browser gaming has been in decline
Browser gaming was hit hard by the loss of Flash. Almost all of the most popular and iconic browser games of the last two decades were made using the [now defunct technology](https://web.archive.org/web/20210113043640/https://www.infoworld.com/article/3601062/adobe-flash-reaches-end-of-life.html). The end of Flash was seen by many as the end of an era and an opportunity to look back at what felt like a golden age of accessible and novel gaming. 

But why was that the case? Why weren't these games rewritten in HTML and JavaScript. In 2005 when Flash gaming took off the most common browser was IE6. In 2020 when Flash support ended the most common browser was Chrome 80 and it could do pretty much everything Flash could without the need of the plugin. Despite that many of the big browser gaming websites continued to coast by on the large catalog of Flash games that had been made since the early days of Newgrounds, even as the supply of new Flash games dried up.

The reality is that many developers had lost interest in the browser as a platform years earlier. The iPhone app store made it much easier to monitize sales, bug checking on a bunch of different buggy browsers wasn't required, the market for mobile apps was growing fast and touch screens created an opportunity to try out new ideas. On the other side of the spectrum, developers wanting to invest in making more visually impressive and interactive games for Linux/Mac/PC were able to get distribution online when Valve released Steam Direct.

## Browser gaming is coming back

![jam.gg-retro-gaming-is-back.png](/uploads/jam_gg_retro_gaming_is_back_7b19498365.png)

While the attention has been away from the browser it's developed into a serious competitor. Browsers can run fast code, run 2d and 3d graphics, talk to peripheral such as web cams and game controllers, and they can do all that without the need for the user to install anything. This means that users can quickly try out games, perhaps a demo, perhaps a full game, share a link through social media and start a social experience. The web also lends itself to user generated and user extended content.

The browser has a kind of magic that mobile apps and downloadable games don't. There is increasing frustration with having to deal with app stores because of their restrictions, the control they have, and the slow processing of updates. Also keeping compatibility with a number of regularly updated operating systems can be a pain.

There's a big opportunity for the first mover who finds the winning formula for the third wave in browser gaming (the first being Java applets, the second being Flash). Jam.gg is joining the renaissance in browser gaming, describing itself as a social gaming platform that allows users to play official, licensed games with friends online via desktop or mobile, through a Chrome browser.

![jam.gg-all-games.png](/uploads/jam_gg_all_games_9c7c4608d6.png)

When you land on the home page you're greeted with a banner that reads "Retro gaming is back!". One click and you're at the sign up screen. Sign up with Facebook, Google or an email address.

From there you can create a room and invite your friends to play one of the catalog of games. Once they're there you'll be able to see and hear each other via integrated video chat, which is a very cool feature.

From our testing the games work well and the UI is nicely thought out and responsive, supporting keyboard, mouse and controller. Just these features are impressive but it goes even further, the ability to upload your own games to play. The service can emulate old consoles, as long as you have your own game file to upload.

![jam.gg-bring-your-own-games.png](/uploads/jam_gg_bring_your_own_games_6593f93d29.png)

## Game streaming
Technologically [jam.gg](https://jam.gg) is interesting. Turn off your internet connection for a second and see the game screen go blank. The site is streaming the game as a video. This has advantages and disadvantages.

The main advantage is that it should be much harder for cheaters to ruin multiplayer and competitive games because they don’t have access to server side code, and even if they do the results should be computed fairly. Also despite players systems varying widely the quality will be consistent, another reason why players will be on an even footing.

The disadvantage most people will think of immediately is the potential for lag. A game running in the browser will normally feel more responsive to user input. Games run on the server and streamed to the client can’t be played in an offline mode either, for users who are perhaps travelling and don’t have a consistent Internet connection.

![jam.gg-racing.png](/uploads/jam_gg_racing_25ae81c61b.png)

It's hard to know what form the next big gaming sites will take, there's certainly a big barrier to entry if the future is streaming. What we do know is jam.gg has launched strongly with a very good line up of games, and the site is definitely worth checking out.

What do you think of jam.gg? Write it in the comment section below that doesn't exist. 

Jam.gg is streaming retro games right into your browser

CodePen is an online community for testing and showcasing code snippets. It functions as an online code editor divided into an HTML, styling and code block. The page, called a "pen", shows the result live. The site is a useful resource for developers wanting to quickly test out an idea without setting up a project. It's especially powerful that the editor isn't limited to HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The blocks can be written in a variety of different formats such as Markdown, Pug, Slim, Less, Sass, PostCSS, TypeScript etc.

Founded back in 2012, CodePen has grown into one of the most inspiring destinations on the web, not only for all the wildly different and creative ideas on display but also because its a learning experience to work out how the effect was achieved. Unfortunately it's no longer possible to browse all the amazing content to your hearts content without signing in.

Check out the 10 pens below for some inspiration from 10 years of CodePen: 


## **1) Untitled by Rishab Sharma**
A demonstration of material physics. 
[https://codepen.io/rishab-sharma-the-animator/pen/XWeZmOz](https://codepen.io/rishab-sharma-the-animator/pen/XWeZmOz)

## **2) CSS 3D Bending Effect - Page Flip by Fabrizio Bianchi**
A book opening and closing created purely with HTML and CSS.
[https://codepen.io/_fbrz/pen/eYrNeW](https://codepen.io/_fbrz/pen/eYrNeW)

## **3) Tower blocks by Fabrizio Bianchi**
A little 3d time based challenge.
[https://codepen.io/ste-vg/pen/ppLQNW](https://codepen.io/ste-vg/pen/ppLQNW)

## **4) Pure CSS Tic-tac-toe by Žiga Miklič**
[https://codepen.io/ziga-miklic/pen/QWrGyW](https://codepen.io/ziga-miklic/pen/QWrGyW)

## **5) Parallax Star background in CSS**
[https://codepen.io/sarazond/pen/LYGbwj](https://codepen.io/sarazond/pen/LYGbwj)

## **6) threejs space rocket by Finn O'Connor-Morberg**
[ https://codepen.io/recursiveElk/pen/rXaoKY]( https://codepen.io/recursiveElk/pen/rXaoKY)

## **7) Full House (BabylonJS) by Andy Wong**
[https://codepen.io/andykswong/pen/wvzzoxG](https://codepen.io/andykswong/pen/wvzzoxG)

## **8) Anime.js Fireworks canvas demo by Julian Garnier**
[https://codepen.io/juliangarnier/pen/gmOwJX](https://codepen.io/juliangarnier/pen/gmOwJX)

## **9) Lightning by Akimitsu Hamamuro**
[https://codepen.io/akm2/pen/DbNJXr](https://codepen.io/akm2/pen/DbNJXr)

## **10) Birds of a Feather by Tiffany Rayside**
An example of flocking behavior. 
[https://codepen.io/tmrDevelops/pen/dMdNvy](https://codepen.io/tmrDevelops/pen/dMdNvy)

CodePen is 10

[CHILLSUBS.com](https://CHILLSUBS.COM) is here to help writers find the right magazine to submit their writing to. Making search possible via completely objective categories such as magazine vibe, response time, the genre accepted and so on.

The app boasts an impressively large database of magazines and after a few hours of searching I found the perfect publication for me: Nawr, a tri-annual magazine supporting Welsh and Wales-based writers and artists, specialising in art, literature and philosophy.

The roadmap features more details for magazines with the "more info to come" label, an increased possible search criteria and details about contests and nominations.

The site is aesthetically pleasing with that ultra snappy feel of a site made using React. With a few spacing quirks and a complete lack of animation effects that go SWOOSH, it's not perfect. Worst of all middle clicking on most of the links doesn't open a new browser tab.



CodePen is 10

CHILLSUBS.COM: Find the right home for your writing