Make this
A shared ritual with a place, prop, character, choice, and ending.
The one-line idea
Sidequest turns the family home into a programmable adventure world.
A secret clue appears on a Field Kit. A hidden card turns a room into part of the story. A robot reacts. A launch pad glows. A tiny paper flag marks the finish.
Skip this
A tiny website copied onto every gadget.
The first five minutes
01
Home Base calls the team
The screen glows: "A star has fallen somewhere in the house."
✦ STAR SIGNAL FOUNDPress one big button to accept
Feels right
Both kids know the mission in ten seconds.
If not
Cut words. Keep one action.
02-04
Follow, scan, celebrate
A Field Kit shows a private clue. A card makes a real place part of the story. The star fills one piece.
CLUE → SEARCH → SCAN → ✦Every action changes something you can see or hear
05
End together
The last scan reunites the team. A short tune plays. An adult may enable a lightweight physical reveal.
STAR REPAIRED!The story ends even if a prop is offline
The cast
Home Base
Tab5 mission board with pause, skip, and finish controls.
Field Kits
Two Cardputer ADV terminals for clues and choices.
StackChan
Guide, suspect, storyteller, and celebration character.
Checkpoints
NFC readers and twenty cards that make places playable.
Launch Pad
Two chunky keys plus the 8×8 light matrix.
Victory prop
A late, supervised, low-force paper reveal.
Rules for every build
One obvious action
One screen. One job. One clear result.
More than color
Pair color with shape, sound, text, or motion.
Hints without shame
A hint never removes points or makes fun of a player.
Different roles
Give each age a useful job. Swap roles next time.
Grown-up controls
Every adventure needs pause, skip, cancel, and manual complete. Physical motion needs adult enablement. The game must work before AI is switched on.
Keep the edges sharp
- Not a utility controller or voice assistant.
- Not chore software wearing a party hat.
- Not seven unrelated hardware demos.
- Not a reason to power every box on day one.
The first-month win
Watch for curiosity.
A replay request. A handmade card. A clue invented by a kid. A question about what the robot could do next. That matters more than a complete architecture.