The latest articles on DEV Community by Kart Chaos (@kartchaos). https://dev.to/kartchaos https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4183924%2Fbd71e843-7d1e-46e6-b8b6-c7a4a5024aae.png https://dev.to/kartchaos en Kart Chaos Wed, 14 Oct 2026 06:59:15 +0000 https://dev.to/kartchaos/i-built-a-multiplayer-kart-racer-that-runs-in-the-browser-with-threejs-652 https://dev.to/kartchaos/i-built-a-multiplayer-kart-racer-that-runs-in-the-browser-with-threejs-652 <p>I've been working on a side project for a while: <strong>Kart Chaos</strong>, a 3D kart racer that runs entirely in the browser using three.js and WebGL. No download, no account, and it works on phones too. You can try it here: <a href="https://kartchaos.com/?ref=devto" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://kartchaos.com/?ref=devto</a></p> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fw0ltm2qj4ngqahikfrpp.png" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fw0ltm2qj4ngqahikfrpp.png" alt="Kart Chaos race in progress" width="800" height="500"></a></p> <h2> Why a kart racer in the browser? </h2> <p>Kart racers are a great stress test for a web game: lots of moving objects, a camera that has to feel good at speed, physics that needs to be fun rather than realistic, and input that has to feel responsive on both a keyboard and a touchscreen. I wanted to see how far I could push three.js while keeping the "click a link and you're racing" experience.</p> <h2> What's in it </h2> <ul> <li> <strong>Grand Prix</strong> – the Chamo Cup, a 5-track cup</li> <li> <strong>Versus</strong>, <strong>Time Trial</strong>, and a <strong>Daily Challenge</strong> that's the same for everyone each day</li> <li> <strong>Online multiplayer</strong> – create a room, share it with friends, and race with text chat and voice</li> <li> <strong>Touch controls</strong> for mobile, and no sign-up required</li> </ul> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fxgx77i7256a1oh1rbm2o.png" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fxgx77i7256a1oh1rbm2o.png" alt="Kart Chaos screenshot" width="800" height="500"></a></p> <h2> Things I learned along the way </h2> <p><strong>Handling is everything.</strong> Arcade kart physics is mostly about faking it well. Getting drifting and steering to feel "right" took far more iteration than any of the rendering work.</p> <p><strong>Mobile is the real performance target.</strong> A scene that runs smoothly on a desktop GPU can struggle on a low-end phone, so a lot of time went into keeping the scene lean and making touch controls feel as direct as a keyboard.</p> <p><strong>Multiplayer changes everything.</strong> Once other players are on the track, you have to care about latency and what each client actually "sees". Adding rooms, chat and voice on top made it feel like a real game night rather than a tech demo.</p> <p><a href="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fwt817tvqfqsegvxm17iw.png" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=800%2Cheight=%2Cfit=scale-down%2Cgravity=auto%2Cformat=auto/https%3A%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Farticles%2Fwt817tvqfqsegvxm17iw.png" alt="Kart Chaos screenshot" width="800" height="500"></a></p> <h2> Feedback welcome </h2> <p>I'd really appreciate feedback from other devs, especially on:</p> <ul> <li>how the <strong>handling</strong> feels</li> <li><strong>performance on low-end phones</strong></li> <li>how the <strong>netcode</strong> feels when racing others online</li> </ul> <p>Give it a spin at <a href="https://kartchaos.com/?ref=devto" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://kartchaos.com/?ref=devto</a> and let me know in the comments what works and what doesn't. Happy to answer questions about the three.js side of things too!</p> threejs gamedev javascript webdev