Playground for Inspired Web Programmers Showcases Elaborate User-Uploaded Projects

Many user-uploaded projects posted on Codepen.io exist to showcase visual effects and interactive sequences that are perhaps more elaborate than what would actually be necessary to create a website that adheres to contemporary design standards. Since the site itself is often branded as a "playground" for inspired web programmers and artists, a given project on the site is more likely to exist for the sake of showing off effects than demonstrating useful methods of implementing aesthetic trends. Nonetheless, there are Codepen projects that show exquisitely animated and structured effects that involve the use of techniques that would benefit many modern websites' visual themes. The Codepen interface's capacity to let viewers see the code structuring and rendering the project becomes all the more useful for web designers seeking to learn new techniques.

A particular project resembling a robotic character from the video game Portal 2 would clearly only exist on a website as an entertaining novelty instead of a means to sell a product or service. However, it demonstrates how effects presented in the SVG format can sport enough detail that it looks like a separate image file had to have been loaded. The character's fairly realistic appearance comes about because of an effective use of gradients that gives its body the impression of having physical depth to it. The CSS syntax behind the project is responsible for the majority of the character's textured appearance while the JavaScript syntax dictates the patterns and movements of its body and eye.

While the use of SVG to create a textured image allows the project to be loaded more quickly in users' browsers than websites that feature large image files, the project opens up with a loud audio file that would likely take up more disk space if it is not tightly compressed in quality. In a hidden feature, several other voice files can be played if the viewer either double-clicks the character's body or presses the "S" key. Furthermore, the vibrancy of the scene is subtly increased by making certain points on the background blink out or shine brighter temporarily. For more information click here https://codepen.io/manz/pen/QXQyvb.