New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge: THE OTHER SIDE

Source: Dev.to

Introduction

This is a submission for the New Year, New You Portfolio Challenge presented by Google AI.

My name is Robert Ishoka, and I wanted to build something that felt less like a website and more like a place. I’m a mobile developer with four years of experience, focusing on smooth interactions and thoughtful user experiences.

The challenge arrived just after Stranger Things finished airing, leaving me pondering parallel worlds, hidden layers of reality, and how small, seemingly insignificant forces can completely reshape a space. I wanted my portfolio to capture that feeling—something that could shift and transform depending on how you interacted with it.

Concept

I didn’t want to present information in the usual way. Instead of scrolling through a list of skills, I wanted users to move through a space. This required rethinking every part of the portfolio: layout, scrolling physics, colour, typography, and transitions. Each element had to feel alive, almost like a world with its own rules, so that crossing from Reality to The Other Side would feel like stepping through a portal, not just loading a new page.

The project became an experiment in world‑building with code. Inspired by the parallel worlds in Stranger Things, I used:

• Unexpected colour changes
• Subtle motion physics
• Hidden interactive easter eggs
• Dynamic transitions that make the environment feel responsive and alive

Every choice—from scrolling physics to the secret “Konami” dev mode—was about crafting a space you could explore, not just read.

Live site: THE OTHER SIDE (if the embed above doesn’t load)

Technical Details

• Framework: Flutter (Web)
• State Management: flutter_riverpod (v2+)
• Deployment: Google Cloud Run (Docker + Nginx)

The Struggle

Flutter Web isn’t a traditional web framework, and you feel that immediately. The biggest challenge wasn’t functionality—it was feel.

• Scrolling, momentum, and the transitions between dimensions needed to feel weighty, intentional, and physical.
• Multiple optimization passes and many late nights were spent tweaking physics curves and render timing. I refused to ship until it felt like stepping through a portal, not just navigating between pages.

I used Antigravity (Google’s advanced agentic AI) as a pair‑programming assistant. It was especially helpful for:

1. Brainstorming the overall architecture
2. Debugging an Nginx configuration that repeatedly broke during early Cloud Run deployments

Having an AI to reason through failures made iteration significantly faster.

Secret Konami Code

I couldn’t resist adding a secret. Entering the classic Konami Code:

↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A

unlocks a hidden Matrix‑style developer overlay. This grants System Root Access and allows you to download a raw, JSON‑parsed version of my resume as a PDF. It’s a small easter egg designed to reward curiosity—especially from fellow developers.

At the press of a button, the entire application mutates:

• Colour systems
• Typography
• Layout physics
• Interaction behaviour

All of it changes instantly, without dropping frames. Optimising this level of global mutation on Flutter Web was one of the hardest technical challenges of the project—but seeing it run smoothly makes it worth it.

Invitation

This project pushed me far outside my comfort zone—not just technically, but creatively. If you believe the web can be more than pages and forms, I’d love for you to step into The Other Side.