Infinite Pokémon
English | 简体中文 · GitHub repository · Technical report v0.4 (PDF, provisional)
Quick start with your AI assistant
npx skills add Shellishack/infinite-pokemon --skill infinite-pokemon
Then ask Codex (or your compatible AI assistant): “Use $infinite-pokemon to set up and start the game for me.” The entry skill guides the agent to clone missing game files, check prerequisites, install dependencies, build, and launch. Complete Codex sign-in/token consent in the game, or choose the no-AI tutorial preview.
Installing a skill does not launch software by itself. The Skills CLI requires a repository source; the bare npx skills add infinite-pokemon is not a supported global alias. Entry skill.
Educational and non-commercial use only. This is an experimental fan project, not an official Pokémon product. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Nintendo, Creatures, GAME FREAK, or The Pokémon Company.
Generated by Codex. This repository was generated by OpenAI Codex from loosely sketched ideas supplied by a human. Third-party dependencies and reference assets were incorporated into the project; they were not created by Codex and retain their respective ownership and license terms. See DISCLAIMER.md and asset credits.
The adventure never ends.
Watch the 35-second intro: play, build a shared history, and let Codex help create what comes next.
Infinite Pokémon explores a simple idea: a game world can keep being written as you play. Walk toward a new horizon, and a local AI harness uses the history of your adventure to propose what comes next—places, characters, conversations, and story hooks. Return to a place you know, and it should remain part of the same world, with your progress and consequences intact.
This is a playable TypeScript prototype of that idea, presented as a Pokémon-style pixel-art creature-catching RPG powered by an AI harness. The goal is a continuing adventure shaped by play, with familiar controls and dependable game rules. Open-ended generation is the ambition; finite storage, generation time, provider limits, and the current engine's vocabulary still constrain every run.
How the adventure continues
- Play in an authoritative world. The server handles movement, collision, battles, inventory, and progression. An AI suggestion cannot award itself a victory or move your trainer.
- Remember what actually happened. Each run stores maps, choices, NPC memories, and an event history. The server exports an immutable local snapshot for the generation skill to read.
- Prepare the next places. Your host's Codex proposes content from that snapshot. Schemas, map validation, and dependency checks decide what can enter the game. Visited places stay stable.
- Generate ahead, or wait deliberately. A configurable depth of 0–3 controls map preparation. Depth 1 is the default. Generation batch size defaults to three simultaneous blocks and can be set to 1–8 in Session; choose one for sequential work. Cached maps are reused; unfinished destinations show real queue/generation status with retry and cancel controls.
- Choose another future. Create a checkpoint, keep playing, or branch from an earlier one. A branch gets its own world database and generation context. Later events in the original run do not become memories in the new branch.
In multiplayer, friends explore the same run and share its world history. Only the host connects Codex and supplies the generation allowance. Other runs and checkpoint branches remain separate worlds.
What exists today—and what comes next
| Area | Current prototype | Direction for future development |
|---|---|---|
| World generation | Persistent template maps, generated stories, biome choices, greetings, hooks, and bounded terrain features | Richer terrain geometry and more varied environments |
| Continuity | Run-scoped history, NPC memory, neighboring edge/surface context, and stale-proposal checks | Measured long-term narrative coherence and enforced gradual terrain transitions |
| Characters | Persistent creature/NPC traits, generated species profiles, hybrid eggs, and bounded NPC intentions | More expressive agents with explicit, testable behavior contracts |
| Visuals and buildings | Classic reference art, new pixel-art recipes, distinct maps, shelters with shops/nurseries, and healing | Validated image-generated assets and customizable buildings |
| Regional progression | Route trainers, personal tutorials, and a cooperative guardian | Connected multi-block regions, service centers, and persistent Dojo masters |
| Saves and pacing | Default runs, immutable checkpoint trees, isolated branches, cached maps, and depth 0–3 preparation | Broader replay, scheduling, and player-experience studies |
The generation skill keeps its core instructions short and provides separate references for terrain, gradual transitions, buildings, regional Dojos, and visual assets. It gives the harness creative freedom within the capabilities of the current job. Hospitals/community centers are specified to provide healing, saving, and trading; trading and the full center/Dojo systems are not implemented yet. The current runtime can render new creature, item, and vehicle visuals from validated pixel-art recipes; external image-generation importing is still unimplemented.
The title has two choices: Single player and Multiplayer. Full single-player exploration uses your local Codex; a finite tutorial preview works without it. Multiplayer offers Host session and Join session; only the host needs Codex, and guests join by IP address or URL. There are no game accounts, invitation codes, or recovery-key screens. The world owner supplies the generation allowance and agrees to its token use.
This is an experimental implementation, not a finished release. Terrain comes from validated, seeded map templates; the harness supplies names, descriptions, biome choices, NPC profiles, greetings, and story hooks. It does not invent arbitrary executable gameplay. New catalog art is rendered from bounded recipes; external image generation is a separate future pipeline.
Run on your computer
Install Node.js 22.13 or newer, then run these commands from this repository:
Node 22.13–22.15 is supported: database backups fall back to SQLite VACUUM INTO when the newer online backup API is unavailable. The fallback briefly blocks the server while copying; newer Node versions use the asynchronous online backup API. Desktop startup failures display the server's actual error; port advice is shown only for an address-in-use error.
Docker is optional. The normal local workflow is just Node.js and the commands below.
npm install
npm run build
npm start
The application uses Node's built-in SQLite support, which may print an experimental warning. The runtime dependency includes Codex CLI 0.153.4; a separate global installation is not required. The bridge prefers the project CLI so an older globally installed executable does not silently change compatibility.
Open the local game at http://127.0.0.1:8788:
- Select Single player.
- If Codex is not already verified, choose Connect to Codex. This authorizes the displayed token-use notice, verifies the harness, and enters automatically. Finish provider sign-in if prompted.
- The game enters automatically. Verification sends a short nonce confirmation without loading a skill or reading files. Once it succeeds, the starting map is playable and nearby maps prepare in the background according to your generation depth (1 by default). Unfinished destinations show a waiting screen.
A still-valid Codex connection is reused. After restarting an approved run, the game automatically checks the local sign-in and sends a tiny confirmation prompt; you do not need to click Connect again. A failed check returns to the Connect action. There is no separate account-creation or manual map-preparation step. The confirmation asks only for a nonce and “ok”, with no skill loading or file reads. Provider startup and response time still apply. Trainer nickname, generation batch size, map generation depth, and saves appear under the collapsed Optional settings section.
There is no game-level job cap in the normal connection flow. Verification and background generation consume Codex allowance; failed attempts can consume allowance too. Provider limits and billing still apply.
For development, npm run dev runs the TypeScript server and Vite middleware together on the same ports. For the Electron host window, build first and then run:
npm run desktop
Electron opens a handheld-style console frame with an inset screen, custom window controls, and a themed startup screen. It starts its own Node server on available ports by default; explicit PORT / ADMIN_PORT values are still supported. This is a source-run desktop shell, not a packaged installer. It requires Node on PATH, or an absolute NODE_BINARY setting.
Tutorial preview
Choose Single player → Play tutorial preview on the Codex connection screen to start without connecting Codex or spending tokens. It contains five distinct outdoor areas and their prepared indoor rooms. Rooms belong to their outdoor area and do not add new world maps. No new maps, model-generated NPC plans, or model calls run in preview. You can finish all beginner lessons by revisiting the prepared routes and the