Critter Core

Fight. Dodge. Outlast.

Critter Core is a fast-paced multiplayer maze deathmatch for up to 4 players. Navigate procedurally generated mazes, blast your friends with rockets, dodge monsters, and grab powerups — all while your heart rate might just decide the outcome.

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🎮 Game Modes

🏰 Maze — Deathmatch

Classic last-critter-standing. Earn points by eliminating opponents and surviving monster waves. The maze reshuffles every round — no two games are the same.

❤️ With live heart rate: Your vision shrinks as your pulse rises — the higher your BPM, the less of the maze you can see. Stay calm to stay sharp.

🔦 Control — Zone Capture

One zone. One winner. Stand inside the capture point to claim it — push others out and hold your ground to rack up points.

❤️ With live heart rate: A racing heart works against you here — the higher your BPM, the longer it takes to capture the zone. Stay composed to dominate.

🤝 Coop — Survive Together

Put the rivalry aside. Work as a team to survive endless waves of increasingly aggressive monsters. Share the maze, cover each other's backs, and see how long you last.

❤️ With live heart rate: Only the player with the lowest heart rate has full vision of the maze. Everyone else is in the dark — but can ping their position to be found. Keep your cool, guide your team, and escape together.

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❤️ Heart Rate Integration

Connect a HypeRate-compatible heart rate monitor and your BPM becomes part of the game. Higher heart rate? Faster capture speed, stronger effects — your body is part of the controller.

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⚡ Powerups

• Wall Pierce — Rockets blast straight through walls
• Speed Boost — Zoom through the maze at full throttle
• Invincibility — Shrug off hits for a few precious seconds
• Rapid Fire — Unleash a barrage of rockets
• Homing Rocket — Let your missiles find their own targets

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👾 Monsters

• Crawler — Patrols the maze at a steady pace
• Stalker — Hunts the nearest player relentlessly
• Phantom — Phases through walls — nowhere is safe
• Splitter — Splits into two smaller threats when destroyed

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🎯 How to Play

1. Enter your name and optionally a Room ID to play with friends
2. The host picks a game mode and starts the match
3. Move with WASD or arrow keys — aim and shoot with the mouse
4. Eliminate opponents, survive monsters, and top the scoreboard

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💬 Also available as a Discord Activity

Play Critter Core directly inside Discord — no tab switching, no links to share. Launch the Activity from any voice channel and your friends can join instantly. The Discord version includes Rich Presence so your game state shows on your profile.

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Critter Core is a browser-based multiplayer game. An active internet connection is required. All game sessions run on a shared server — create a private room by entering a unique Room ID.