What if analyzing your GitHub profile felt like unlocking a character in an arcade game instead of staring at a leaderboard? That's the idea behind profiler0x0 🎮 - a project I built that transforms GitHub profiles into collectible arcade-style cards with developer archetypes, signal analysis, and actionable insights.
No ranking. No judgment. Just signals.
The Philosophy
Most developer profile analyzers focus on metrics that create comparison and competition. Stars, followers, contributions - they all feed into a ranking system that can feel demotivating or reductive.
profiler0x0 takes a different approach. Instead of asking "How do you compare to others?", it asks "What does your profile signal about your development style?" The result is a fun, shareable identity that celebrates different developer patterns without creating hierarchy.
The Five Signals
The core of profiler0x0 is analyzing five key signals from your GitHub activity:
🔄 Consistency
How steady is your activity pattern? We analyze update patterns across months to detect steady builders vs. bursty sprinters.
🎯 Focus
Do you maintain a few meaningful projects or explore many ideas? We measure the ratio of active vs. abandoned repositories.
🔧 Maintenance
How well do you keep projects polished? We check for READMEs, licenses, recent updates, and general repository health.
📖 Narrative
Can others understand what you build? We analyze README quality, topics, and how well you tell your project stories.
🤝 Collaboration
How much do you work with others? (Estimate only) We use forks and contributions as proxies.
Each signal is calculated from publicly available GitHub data and scored 0-100, then mapped to developer archetypes.
Developer Archetypes
Based on your signal combinations, profiler0x0 assigns you one of eight archetypes:
- The Maintainer: High maintenance + consistency. Keeps projects alive past the hype.
- The Silent Builder: High consistency, low narrative. Builds quietly, needs clearer story.
- The Prototype Machine: Low focus, generates ideas fast. Needs more finishes.
- The Specialist: High focus. Deep investment in a few domains.
- The Archivist: High narrative + maintenance. Documents well, shares knowledge.
- The Comeback Kid: Strong base, ready to return.
- The Hype Surfer: Rides trends, can convert spikes.
- The Ghost: Profile needs a flagship project.
Each archetype comes with a rarity level (Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary) based on how distinctive your signal pattern is - not how "good" it is.
The Arcade Card System
Your profile becomes a collectible card with:
- Level: Calculated from account age, active repos, and quality metrics (1-50)
- Stats: RPG-style attributes (GRIT, FOCUS, CRAFT, AURA) derived from signals
- Perks: Unlocked based on signal thresholds (e.g., "README Master", "Long-Term Builder")
- Rarity: Visual distinction based on signal patterns
Here's an example of how signals map to stats:
// GRIT: consistency + maintenance blend (endurance, reliability)
const grit = Math.round(
(signals.consistency.score * 0.6 + signals.maintenance.score * 0.4)
);
// FOCUS: direct mapping of focus score
const focus = signals.focus.score;
// CRAFT: maintenance + narrative blend (polish, professionalism)
const craft = Math.round(
(signals.maintenance.score * 0.6 + signals.narrative.score * 0.4)
);
// AURA: narrative + distinctiveness (visibility, presence)
const aura = Math.round(
(signals.narrative.score * 0.7 + distinctiveness * 0.3)
);
Tech Stack
Backend
- Runtime: Node.js + TypeScript
- Framework: Fastify (lightweight and fast)
- Testing: Vitest (113 tests: 91 unit + 16 integration + 6 validation)
- Validation: Zod schemas for request/response validation
- Data Source: GitHub REST API
- Caching: In-memory (10min TTL)
Frontend
- Framework: Next.js 15 (App Router)
- UI Library: React 19
- Styling: Tailwind CSS with custom arcade aesthetics
- Language: TypeScript
- Animations: CSS + custom neon glow effects
Architecture Highlights
Signal Calculation
Signals are computed from repository data with careful attention to edge cases:
function computeConsistency(repos: GitHubRepo[]): SignalDetails {
if (repos.length === 0) {
return { score: 0, label: 'none', explanation: 'No repositories', metrics: {} };
}
// Group updates by month
const monthlyUpdates = new Map<string, number>();
repos.forEach(repo => {
const month = repo.updatedAt.substring(0, 7); // YYYY-MM
monthlyUpdates.set(month, (monthlyUpdates.get(month) || 0) + 1);
});
// Calculate coefficient of variation
const updateCounts = Array.from(monthlyUpdates.values());
const mean = updateCounts.reduce((a, b) => a + b, 0) / updateCounts.length;
const variance = updateCounts.reduce((sum, val) => sum + Math.pow(val - mean, 2), 0) / updateCounts.length;
const stdDev = Math.sqrt(variance);
const cv = mean > 0 ? stdDev / mean : 1;
// Lower CV = more consistent = higher score
const score = Math.max(0, Math.min(100, Math.round(100 - (cv * 50))));
// ... label and explanation logic
}
Archetype Selection
Archetypes are selected based on signal combinations using a decision tree:
export function selectArchetype(signals: Signals): Archetype {
const scores = {
consistency: signals.consistency.score,
focus: signals.focus.score,
maintenance: signals.maintenance.score,
narrative: signals.narrative.score,
collaboration: signals.collaboration.score
};
// Ghost: Very low overall activity
if (avgScore < 20 && maxScore < 35) {
return createArchetype('ghost', signals, 'Low overall signal scores');
}
// Maintainer: High maintenance + high consistency
if (scores.maintenance >= 65 && scores.consistency >= 60) {
return createArchetype('maintainer', signals, 'High maintenance and consistent activity');
}
// ... more archetype logic
}
API Design
The API is simple and focused:
// GET /api/analyze/:username
{
"username": "octocat",
"profile": { "name": "...", "avatarUrl": "..." },
"signals": {
"consistency": { "score": 72, "label": "steady", ... },
"focus": { "score": 65, "label": "moderate", ... },
// ...
},
"archetype": {
"id": "maintainer",
"name": "The Maintainer",
"rarity": "epic",
// ...
},
"card": {
"level": 18,
"stats": { "GRIT": 81, "FOCUS": 65, "CRAFT": 78, "AURA": 72 },
"perks": ["README Master", "Long-Term Builder"]
},
"tips": [
{ "title": "Add more READMEs", "why": "...", "impact": "Medium" }
]
}
Testing Strategy
With 113 passing tests, the project has comprehensive coverage:
- Unit Tests (91): Signal calculations, archetype selection, card generation
- Integration Tests (16): API routes, cache behavior, schema validation
- Validation Tests (6): Username validation with helpful error messages
Example test:
describe('computeConsistency', () => {
it('should score high for steady monthly updates', () => {
const repos = generateReposWithMonthlyUpdates(12, 5); // 12 months, 5 updates each
const result = computeConsistency(repos);
expect(result.score).toBeGreaterThan(70);
expect(result.label).toBe('steady');
});
it('should score low for bursty activity', () => {
const repos = [
...generateReposWithMonthlyUpdates(2, 50), // 2 months with 50 updates
...generateReposWithMonthlyUpdates(10, 0) // 10 months with 0 updates
];
const result = computeConsistency(repos);
expect(result.score).toBeLessThan(40);
expect(result.label).toBe('bursty');
});
});
The UI: Arcade Aesthetics
The frontend uses Tailwind CSS with custom neon color schemes and glow effects:
/* Custom neon colors */
--neon-cyan: #00f0ff;
--neon-purple: #a855f7;
--neon-pink: #ec4899;
--neon-blue: #3b82f6;
/* Glow effects */
.shadow-neon {
box-shadow: 0 0 20px rgba(168, 85, 247, 0.5);
}
/* Animated gradients */
.bg-gradient-to-r {
background: linear-gradient(to right, var(--neon-cyan), var(--neon-purple));
}
The result is a retro-futuristic aesthetic that makes profile analysis feel like a game.
What I Learned
Building profiler0x0 taught me several valuable lessons:
Philosophy matters: Starting with "no ranking, no judgment" shaped every design decision and made the project more inclusive.
Signal design is hard: Creating meaningful signals from limited public data requires careful thought about what you're actually measuring.
Testing pays off: The 113 tests caught numerous edge cases and made refactoring safe.
Simple APIs win: A single endpoint (
/api/analyze/:username) is easier to use and maintain than a complex REST API.Aesthetics enhance UX: The arcade theme makes the tool more engaging and shareable.
Try It Out
You can check it out, if this resonates with you. I would love to have your feedback and improvement ideas!
Limitations & Future Work
profiler0x0 is an MVP with known limitations:
- Can't see private repos or internal work
- Collaboration signal is perfectible (no PR/issue data in MVP)
- New accounts will have low signals (not enough data)
- Optimized for open-source activity patterns
Future enhancements could include:
- More sophisticated collaboration signals (PRs, issues)
- Historical trend analysis
- Custom archetype definitions
- Export/share functionality improvements
Conclusion
profiler0x0 demonstrates that developer tools don't have to be competitive or judgmental. By focusing on signals rather than rankings, we can create tools that celebrate different development styles and help developers understand their profiles in new ways.
The arcade aesthetic makes it fun, but the real value is in the insights - actionable tips that help you level up your GitHub profile based on what you actually want to signal.
No ranking. No judgment. Just signals. 🎮
Top comments (2)
Nice, just test my github account. Really interesting card. But the score on the card is a little bit mis-guided. It could be better if you add a small information explanation button for reader to understand the score meaning.
Thanks for your feedback! I'll make sure to implement this shortly then :)
You actually have a bit more information here, accessible from the main page