# Two Tesla Roadster browser games, built after waking up at 4:04

> Awake at 4:04, two 3D browser games in the lab by 7:30: a Micro Machines racer on Elon's desk and a flying Tesla Roadster you have to land.

Published: 2026-10-17 · Facts checked on 2026-10-17
URL: https://sobra.be/en/nostrabramus/tesla-roadster-browser-games/

At 4:04 I was wide awake in bed. Sleep not found, error 404. Badum tss. Instead of lying there, I got up and started playing around on my website. By half past seven there were two new games in [the lab](https://sobra.be/lab/).

The new Tesla Roadster was still on my mind. At Thursday's unveiling, [TechCrunch reports](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/15/tesla-reveals-spacex-powered-roadster-that-flies-and-falls-with-style/), the car drove up an inverted ramp, spun around and landed on the pavement, using thrusters fed by compressed air. 0 to 60 mph in one second. It looked like an AI video, or a scene from a sci-fi film. Musk says production starts in 2028.

## Micro Machines on Elon's desk

As a kid I played Micro Machines V3 on the PlayStation, the first 3D game in the series, released by Codemasters in 1997 ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro_Machines_V3)). Tiny cars racing around the house. I wanted that feeling back, with a mini Roadster on Elon Musk's desk, or at least how I picture it.

[Ludicrous Desk](https://sobra.be/lab/ludicrous-desk/) is a 3D world in three.js. You race three laps around a giant desk, kickflip over traffic, take a loop and fly over a ramp in bullet time if you have enough thrust left. Along the way a Starship lifts off, the coffee mug tips over and Grok chats on a phone.

![A small Roadster drives along a winding track on a big desk, past traffic cones, a keyboard and a rocket](https://sobra.be/images/nostrabramus/ludicrous-desk.png)

## Landing a Roadster like a booster

A while ago I played the SpaceX lander simulators, like the [Falcon 9 Lander](https://thenextweb.com/news/its-not-as-easy-as-it-looks) on Scratch. You have to set a booster down upright, and it's really hard. Now that the Roadster can apparently fly, I did the same with the car.

In [Roadster Landing](https://sobra.be/lab/roadster-landing/) the Roadster flies off a half loop, upside down and spinning. You fire a few thrusters to flip it back onto its wheels and land it on one of three pads. The further the pad, the more points. You get one tank and 30 seconds. Miss, and everything blows up.

![The Roadster comes off a big white half loop, with a dashboard showing height, sink rate and tilt](https://sobra.be/images/nostrabramus/roadster-landing.png)

## About three hours of work, with Claude Code

I built all of it with Claude Code. Several sessions ran side by side, each on its own branch: one for the racer, one for the lander and one for a new 404 page with a hole of mini golf, which felt right at 4:04. I set the direction, played in between and pushed back on whatever didn't feel right. The loop had to take a single lane, the dashboard had to be readable on a phone, and the gas had to come out of the car's real nozzles.

Every change was built and got its own commit. Between 5:02 and 7:29 that added up to 52. From lying awake to two playable games took about three hours.

## Play, share and tell me what you think

Both games have a share button. In the racer you share your time with a photo and a link that lets someone race your ghost. In the lander you share your landing, or your crash.

All feedback is welcome: what's too hard, what breaks on your device, what's missing. You'll find me [at the bottom of the homepage](https://sobra.be/en/#contact). And to be clear, Tesla and SpaceX have nothing to do with any of this.

## Sources

- [Tesla reveals SpaceX-powered Roadster that flies and falls with style (TechCrunch)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/15/tesla-reveals-spacex-powered-roadster-that-flies-and-falls-with-style/)
- [Micro Machines V3 (Wikipedia)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro_Machines_V3)
- [This Web game lets you do what Elon Musk can’t – land a rocket (The Next Web)](https://thenextweb.com/news/its-not-as-easy-as-it-looks)