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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Looking for the 2021 js13kGames entries Lee Reilly found especially memorable? This selection brings together 13 browser-playable games made for the competition’s SPACE theme and its 13-kilobyte constraint. The games range from shooters and platformers to puzzles, racing, and rhythm experiments. They are Reilly’s favorites, presented in no particular order—not an official ranking.
What this js13kGames selection covers
Lee Reilly’s feature, published on The GitHub Blog on October 5, 2021 and updated September 7, 2022, showcases 13 entries from the 2021 js13kGames competition. The constraint gives the collection its common thread: developers had to make their games fit within 13 kilobytes. The SPACE theme inspired familiar arcade and shooter ideas as well as less expected approaches to movement, puzzles, and sound.
Each entry in the feature has a video preview, a Play link, a Source link, language labels, and a short participant reaction. The reactions are reader comments, not expert reviews or independent test results. The feature also links to the complete competition list for readers who want to explore beyond these 13 picks. Read Lee Reilly’s feature on The GitHub Blog.
The 13 games, in no particular order
Space Huggers
Languages: JavaScript. A roguelike action-platformer. One participant summed up its appeal as “roguelike Broforce in 13kb.”
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Space Block Invaders
Languages: JavaScript. An arcade-shooter take on the theme. A participant praised its technical execution and graphics.
Q1K3
Languages: JavaScript, PHP, and C. This compact first-person shooter drew a participant’s praise as a technical achievement—and a mention of its jump scare. Its creator’s repository identifies it as a 2021 js13kGames entry and includes a play link and a making-of article. Visit the Q1K3 repository.
The Adventures of Captain Callisto
Languages: JavaScript and GLSL. A platform game whose participant feedback highlights its smooth feel, level design, and jetpack animation.
Hit the space!
Languages: JavaScript and HTML. A game built around pressing the space bar; a participant described it as challenging and fun.
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Black Hole Square
Languages: JavaScript and HTML. A puzzle entry praised by a participant for its presentation, puzzle design, and sound.
Tenacity
Languages: JavaScript and HTML. Participant feedback calls attention to its graphics and level design.
Safe Space
Languages: JavaScript and GLSL. A participant singled out its originality, graphics, and audio.
Galaxy Rider
Languages: TypeScript, JavaScript, and GLSL. This physics-puzzle riding game was compared by a participant to Free Rider.
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Beat Rocks
Languages: TypeScript, GLSL, and Python. A music-oriented twist on a classic arcade idea.
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Languages: JavaScript. A participant’s reaction emphasized its cute, polished presentation.
Space Garden
Languages: JavaScript. Participant feedback points to pixel art, dithering, music, and distinctive movement and controls.
The Maze of Space Goblins
Languages: TypeScript. A level-based game. One participant said they played 15 levels and enjoyed how the mechanics changed.
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How to choose what to play
The theme and size limit do not funnel these games into one genre. Use the feature’s previews and play links to choose by the kind of experience you want:
- Action and shooting: try Space Huggers, Space Block Invaders, or Q1K3.
- Platforming and movement: look at The Adventures of Captain Callisto, Space Garden, or Galaxy Rider.
- Puzzles and changing mechanics: consider Black Hole Square or The Maze of Space Goblins.
- Sound and rhythm: Beat Rocks is the collection’s music-oriented entry; participant comments also highlight the audio in Black Hole Square and Safe Space.
The language labels are useful if you are also curious about how the games were made. Most list JavaScript, but several include GLSL or HTML, Galaxy Rider and Beat Rocks list TypeScript, Q1K3 lists PHP and C, and Beat Rocks also lists Python. These labels describe the technologies credited in the feature; they do not establish that every listed language was used in the same way.
A small-size showcase, not a ranking
Reilly’s feature presents personal favorites “in no particular order,” so the sequence should not be read as a scorecard. Its value is the range of ideas packed into a shared constraint: recognizable arcade influences sit alongside platforming, physics play, puzzles, and music-centered design. The linked source pages also make the selection useful to developers who want to explore individual implementations, not just play the games.
The feature’s size comparison is historical, not a current measurement of the page: Reilly described an 81kB comparison image and said the page weighed over 3MB with videos included. Those figures refer to the article as described in 2021, not to the present-day download size of the games or a current page-weight test.
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