If you grew up during the 90s or 2000s, you probably know that unmistakable sound: 8-bit chip basslines, sparkling sample-based arpeggios, and mesmerizing hex note matrices scrolling down the screen in FastTracker II, ProTracker, or legendary demoscene cracktros.
C-4 01 v64 A0F | ··· .. .. ··· | G-5 02 v48 ...
D#4 01 v64 ... | F#4 03 v32 C20 | ··· .. .. ···
Many developers dream of building the ultimate retro tracker player in the browser. Not just an MP3 jukebox, but a true WebAssembly synthesis workstation that allows per-channel soloing, tempo modulation, interactive 3D WebGL demoscene worlds, and live FastTracker II pattern scrolling.
Today, I'm excited to share Tracker Music — a live, 60 FPS in-browser chiptune machine packed with 1,300+ authentic modules (from Unreal Superhero 3 and Razor 1911 to Skaven, Purple Motion, and 4mat).
Here is the story of how we built it and how an AI pair-programming copilot helped turn a long-postponed dream project into reality.
Playing pre-rendered MP3 recordings ruins the magic of tracker music. Real tracker files (.mod, .xm, .s3m, .it) contain raw instrument samples and sequenced pattern commands executed in real-time.
libopenmpt engine into WebAssembly.
To capture the true demoscene aesthetic, we built four visualizer layers:
Building this as a solo side-project would normally take months of tedious evenings. Here is how pair-programming with an autonomous AI coding agent solved the hardest parts in record time:
The AI wrote automated scripts to inspect module headers via virtual WASM instances, validating sample counts, channel structures, fixing broken metadata, and generating a clean, searchable index.
Initially, 3D scenes caused high CPU usage on low-end laptops. The AI pinpointed the rendering bottlenecks, optimized geometry transformations, and eliminated unnecessary calculations so the 3D scenes glide smoothly even on integrated GPUs.
Replacing repetitive HTML table generation with direct GPU-accelerated Canvas 2D rendering eliminated micro-stuttering and locked the visualizer at a buttery 60 FPS, while dynamically filling the entire screen height with 20–35 rows.
In tracker music, parameters vary by format (MOD vs XM). The AI redesigned cell positioning into a strict monospace token grid so notes, instruments, volume tags, and effects align in razor-sharp columns with zero overlap.
Experience it live in your browser:
👉 https://tracker.snakelair.ru/
Recommended starter tracks:
What are your favorite tracker modules and demoscene memories? Drop them in the comments below!