aethex-studio/ROADMAP.md

# AeThex Studio - Product Roadmap & Vision

## Current State: Basic IDE
What we have now is essentially a code editor with some templates. That's table stakes.

## Vision: The Unity/Unreal for Cross-Platform Metaverse Development
AeThex should be the **one-stop platform** where creators build once and deploy everywhere - with visual tools, AI assistance, marketplace, collaboration, and analytics.

---

## PHASE 1: Core IDE Enhancement (Foundation)

### 1.1 Visual Scripting System
**Why**: 70% of Roblox creators are visual learners / non-coders
```
┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐
│ On Player   │───▶│ Check if    │───▶│ Give Item   │
│ Touch Part  │    │ Has Pass    │    │ to Player   │
└─────────────┘    └─────────────┘    └─────────────┘
```
- Node-based editor (like Unreal Blueprints)
- Drag-and-drop logic blocks
- Auto-generates Lua/Verse/TS code
- Bi-directional: edit nodes OR code

### 1.2 Live Game Preview
**Why**: Can't test code without leaving the IDE
- Embedded Roblox-like 3D viewport
- Hot-reload code changes
- Console output in real-time
- Breakpoints and step debugging
- Mobile device preview mode

### 1.3 Real-time Collaboration
**Why**: Teams need to work together
- Google Docs-style multiplayer editing
- Cursor presence (see teammates typing)
- Voice/video chat integration
- Code review comments inline
- Conflict resolution

### 1.4 Version Control (Built-in Git)
**Why**: Professional teams need proper VCS
- Visual git interface (no command line needed)
- Branch visualization
- Pull request workflow
- Auto-commit on save (optional)
- Integration with GitHub/GitLab

---

## PHASE 2: Asset Pipeline & Creation Tools

### 2.1 3D Scene Editor
**Why**: Visual level design is essential
```
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Scene View                    │ Inspector      │
│ ┌──────────────────────────┐  │ ┌────────────┐ │
│ │      🎮                  │  │ │ Transform  │ │
│ │    ┌───┐                 │  │ │ X: 0  Y: 5 │ │
│ │    │   │  👤             │  │ │ Z: 10     │ │
│ │    └───┘                 │  │ ├────────────┤ │
│ │  ████████████            │  │ │ Scripts    │ │
│ └──────────────────────────┘  │ │ + Add      │ │
│ Hierarchy    │ Assets         │ └────────────┘ │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
- Drag-drop object placement
- Terrain editor
- Lighting system
- Physics simulation
- Cross-platform export (Roblox .rbxl, UEFN .umap)

### 2.2 Asset Library & Manager
**Why**: Games need models, textures, sounds
- Built-in asset browser
- Import: FBX, OBJ, GLB, PNG, WAV, MP3
- Auto-optimization per platform
- Asset variants (LODs, mobile versions)
- AI-powered asset generation (text-to-3D, text-to-texture)

### 2.3 Animation Editor
**Why**: Bring characters to life
- Timeline-based animation
- Skeletal animation support
- Blend trees and state machines
- Animation retargeting (apply human anim to any rig)
- Procedural animation tools

### 2.4 Particle System Editor
**Why**: Visual effects are crucial
- Visual particle editor
- Real-time preview
- Presets library (fire, smoke, magic, etc.)
- Cross-platform particle export

### 2.5 Audio Workstation (Basic)
**Why**: Sound design matters
- Waveform editor
- Spatial audio setup
- Music sequencer (simple)
- Sound effect library
- Adaptive audio triggers

---

## PHASE 3: AI-Powered Development

### 3.1 AI Code Generation (Not Just Translation)
**Why**: "Build me a combat system" should work
```
User: "Create a round-based game system with 3 minute rounds,
       team scoring, and a lobby between rounds"

AI: [Generates complete system with:]
    - RoundManager.lua
    - TeamScoring.lua
    - LobbySystem.lua
    - UI components
    - All connected and working
```

### 3.2 AI Game Designer
**Why**: Help with game design, not just code
- "What mechanics would make this more fun?"
- "Balance these weapon stats"
- "Suggest monetization that isn't predatory"
- Playtest analysis and suggestions

### 3.3 AI Asset Generation
**Why**: Not everyone can do art
- Text-to-3D model generation
- Text-to-texture
- AI music generation
- AI sound effects
- Style transfer (make assets match your game's style)

### 3.4 AI Bug Detection
**Why**: Find issues before players do
- Static analysis with AI reasoning
- "This loop might cause lag because..."
- Security vulnerability detection
- Memory leak detection
- Cross-platform compatibility warnings

### 3.5 AI Documentation
**Why**: Nobody likes writing docs
- Auto-generate code comments
- API documentation from code
- Tutorial generation from codebase
- Changelog generation from commits

---

## PHASE 4: Marketplace & Economy

### 4.1 AeThex Marketplace
**Why**: Creators want to monetize; buyers want shortcuts
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 🏪 AeThex Marketplace                    [Search]   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Featured                                            │
│ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐    │
│ │ Combat  │ │ Vehicle │ │ Fantasy │ │ UI Kit  │    │
│ │ System  │ │ Physics │ │ Assets  │ │ Pro     │    │
│ │ ⭐4.9   │ │ ⭐4.7   │ │ ⭐4.8   │ │ ⭐5.0   │    │
│ │ $15     │ │ $25     │ │ $40     │ │ $10     │    │
│ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘    │
│                                                     │
│ Categories: Scripts | 3D Models | UI | Audio | FX   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
- Sell scripts, assets, templates, full game kits
- Revenue split (80/20 creator/AeThex)
- Ratings and reviews
- License management
- Cross-platform asset conversion included

### 4.2 Creator Subscriptions
**Why**: Recurring revenue for top creators
- Creators can offer subscription access
- Patreon-style tiers
- Early access to new content
- Direct support/consulting

### 4.3 Commission System
**Why**: Connect creators with developers who need custom work
- Post job: "Need inventory system, $500 budget"
- Verified creators can bid
- Escrow payment system
- Portfolio and reviews

---

## PHASE 5: Deployment & Analytics

### 5.1 One-Click Deploy
**Why**: Getting code into games is painful
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 🚀 Deploy to Platform                   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ☑ Roblox        [Connected] [Deploy]    │
│ ☑ UEFN          [Connected] [Deploy]    │
│ ☐ Spatial       [Connect Account]       │
│ ☐ Core Games    [Connect Account]       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Deploy Options:                         │
│ ☑ Run validation checks                 │
│ ☑ Optimize for platform                 │
│ ☐ Deploy to staging first               │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
- OAuth with each platform
- Direct publish to Roblox experiences
- UEFN island deployment
- Automatic platform optimization
- Rollback support

### 5.2 CI/CD Pipeline
**Why**: Professional development workflow
- Automated testing on commit
- Lint and format checks
- Cross-platform compatibility tests
- Staging → Production workflow
- Scheduled deployments

### 5.3 Analytics Dashboard
**Why**: Data-driven game development
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 📊 Game Analytics - "Epic Battle Sim"               │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Players (7 days)          Revenue (7 days)          │
│ ┌─────────────────┐       ┌─────────────────┐       │
│ │    📈 +23%      │       │    📈 +15%      │       │
│ │  ╱            ╲ │       │      ╱╲         │       │
│ │ ╱              ╲│       │    ╱    ╲       │       │
│ │╱                │       │  ╱        ╲     │       │
│ └─────────────────┘       └─────────────────┘       │
│ 45.2K daily active         $12.4K this week         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Retention    │ Monetization  │ Performance          │
│ D1: 42%      │ ARPU: $0.28   │ Avg FPS: 58          │
│ D7: 18%      │ Conv: 3.2%    │ Crash rate: 0.1%     │
│ D30: 8%      │ LTV: $1.85    │ Load time: 2.3s      │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
- Cross-platform unified analytics
- Player behavior tracking
- Funnel analysis
- A/B testing built-in
- Revenue tracking
- Performance monitoring
- Error tracking (Sentry integration)

### 5.4 Performance Profiler
**Why**: Optimize before deploying
- CPU/GPU usage graphs
- Memory allocation tracking
- Script execution time
- Network usage (for multiplayer)
- Platform-specific bottleneck detection
- "This function runs 500x/second, consider caching"

---

## PHASE 6: Multiplayer & Backend

### 6.1 Backend-as-a-Service
**Why**: Multiplayer games need servers
- Managed game servers
- Real-time databases (like Firebase)
- Player authentication
- Leaderboards
- Matchmaking
- Cloud saves
- No server code needed (visual configuration)

### 6.2 Multiplayer Testing
**Why**: Can't test multiplayer alone
- Spawn multiple test clients
- Simulate latency/packet loss
- Record and replay sessions
- Bot players for testing

### 6.3 Economy Management
**Why**: In-game currencies are complex
- Virtual currency management
- Item database
- Trading system
- Anti-cheat for economy
- Cross-platform wallet

---

## PHASE 7: Community & Learning

### 7.1 Learning Platform
**Why**: Grow the next generation
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 🎓 AeThex Academy                       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Your Progress: Level 12 | 2,400 XP      │
│ ████████████░░░░░░░░ 60% to Level 13    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Current Course: Combat Systems          │
│ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐ ┌─────┐        │
│ │ ✅  │ │ ✅  │ │ 🔵  │ │ ⚪  │        │
│ │ 1   │ │ 2   │ │ 3   │ │ 4   │        │
│ └─────┘ └─────┘ └─────┘ └─────┘        │
│ Lesson 3: Hitboxes and Damage           │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 🏆 Achievements                         │
│ [First Script] [100 Lines] [Published]  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
- Interactive coding lessons
- Video tutorials
- Challenges with XP rewards
- Certifications
- Mentorship matching

### 7.2 Community Hub
**Why**: Creators need community
- Project showcases
- Forums / Discord integration
- Game jams (hosted by AeThex)
- Creator spotlights
- Job board

### 7.3 Creator Certification Program
**Why**: Verified expertise matters
- Skill assessments
- Platform-specific certifications
- Verified badges on marketplace
- Enterprise hiring pipeline

---

## PHASE 8: Enterprise & Teams

### 8.1 Team Workspaces
**Why**: Studios need organization
- Organization accounts
- Role-based permissions
- Project organization
- Shared asset libraries
- Team analytics

### 8.2 Enterprise Features
**Why**: Big studios have big needs
- SSO/SAML integration
- Audit logs
- Compliance tools
- Dedicated support
- Custom SLAs
- On-premise option

### 8.3 White-Label Solution
**Why**: Some companies want their own version
- Branded IDE for game studios
- Custom template libraries
- Internal marketplaces
- Integration with existing tools

---

## Revenue Model

### Free Tier
- Full IDE access
- 3 projects
- Community support
- Basic templates
- 1GB asset storage

### Pro ($15/mo)
- Unlimited projects
- AI code generation (100 requests/day)
- Advanced analytics
- Priority support
- 50GB asset storage
- Marketplace selling (85/15 split)

### Team ($40/user/mo)
- Everything in Pro
- Real-time collaboration
- Team workspaces
- Version control
- CI/CD pipelines
- 200GB shared storage

### Enterprise (Custom)
- Everything in Team
- SSO/SAML
- Dedicated support
- Custom SLAs
- Unlimited storage
- On-premise option

---

## Tech Stack Evolution

### Current
```
Next.js → React → Monaco Editor → localStorage
```

### Target
```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    FRONTEND                          │
│  Next.js │ React │ Three.js │ Monaco │ Y.js (CRDT)  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                    BACKEND                           │
│  Node.js │ tRPC │ Prisma │ PostgreSQL │ Redis       │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                 INFRASTRUCTURE                       │
│  Vercel │ AWS S3 │ CloudFlare │ Planetscale         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                   SERVICES                           │
│  Stripe │ Clerk Auth │ Liveblocks │ Sentry │ Posthog│
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                      AI                              │
│  Claude API │ OpenAI │ Replicate (3D Gen)           │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

---

## Priority Implementation Order

### NOW (Next 2-3 months)
1. ✅ Avatar Toolkit (DONE)
2. 🔄 Visual Scripting MVP
3. 🔄 Live Game Preview (embedded)
4. 🔄 Asset Library v1

### NEXT (3-6 months)
5. Real-time Collaboration
6. Built-in Git
7. AI Code Generation v2
8. Marketplace MVP

### LATER (6-12 months)
9. Scene Editor
10. Animation Editor
11. Analytics Dashboard
12. One-Click Deploy
13. Backend-as-a-Service

### FUTURE (12+ months)
14. Enterprise Features
15. Learning Platform
16. Full Marketplace
17. Mobile App

---

## Competitive Positioning

| Feature | Roblox Studio | Unity | Unreal | AeThex |
|---------|--------------|-------|--------|--------|
| Browser-based | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Cross-platform export | ❌ | Partial | ❌ | ✅ |
| AI code translation | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Visual scripting | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | 🔄 |
| Built-in marketplace | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | 🔄 |
| Real-time collab | ❌ | Partial | ❌ | 🔄 |
| Free tier | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Learning built-in | Partial | ❌ | ❌ | 🔄 |

**Our edge**: Browser-based + Cross-platform + AI-native

---

## Success Metrics

### Year 1
- 50,000 registered users
- 5,000 monthly active creators
- 500 marketplace listings
- $100K GMV on marketplace

### Year 2
- 250,000 registered users
- 25,000 monthly active creators
- 5,000 marketplace listings
- $1M GMV on marketplace
- 100 paying teams

### Year 3
- 1M registered users
- 100,000 monthly active creators
- 25,000 marketplace listings
- $10M GMV on marketplace
- 500 paying teams
- 10 enterprise clients