A web game in a native shell: shipping to Google Play and the App Store with Capacitor in five days
Cannon King: Wind Tank Battle started as a browser game — TypeScript, a canvas, a physics loop I could reload in 300 ms. The problem was distribution: nobody finds a URL, and the stores are where the installs are. I had five days and one person (me) before the planned launch date. I did not rewrite anything. I put the existing web build inside a Capacitor shell and shipped it to Google Play and…
Cannon King's web game, Wind Tank Battle, began as a browser-based artillery battle featuring 48 tanks, 20 destructible maps, and 53 single-player stages. When distribution became an issue, Cannon created a native shell using Capacitor and shipped it to Google Play and the App Store within five days. The initial day involved configuring the canvas size and device pixel ratio, handling audio, and managing safe areas and the back button.
Day two focused on implementing native purchases and ensuring idempotency by verifying purchases on the server and granting them only once. On the third day, Cannon developed a coupon system, which required careful database management and server-side validation. Finally, Day four entailed creating store metadata, screenshots, and handling age ratings and privacy forms.
Throughout the process, Cannon emphasized the importance of testing on actual devices and maintaining the existing browser build to minimize development time.
Written by urgent.news from Dev.to's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
