cc-subway

At a glance

cc-subway is worth considering as a small diversion for someone already working in an interactive Claude Code terminal. It puts a three-lane runner beside the transcript and is designed to pause when the coding turn finishes. The game handles movement locally rather than asking the model for each action. Its setup depends on early-access function hooks, so the novelty is a better reason to try it than dependable compatibility.

Good fit

Terminal users who like a short reflex game while a coding task runs. The rules distinguish jumping low barriers, rolling under high ones and changing lanes around trains. A completion event updates the board’s state to pause and display a return-to-work cue. That integration is the interesting part: the game can share the waiting period without requiring a separate game window. It was verified in source, not played here.

Consider something else when

You use a headless session, desktop app or mobile surface, or cannot enable experimental hooks. The README requires a mouse-reporting terminal and says the board must be clicked before it receives keys. A pane docks on the right only in fullscreen layout at 110 columns or wider; otherwise it appears above the prompt. Do not assume a screenshot of a wide terminal represents your setup.

Start here

The README requires Claude Code 2.1.269 or later and CLAUDE_CODE_ENABLE_FUNCTION_HOOKS=1 before loading the plugin. If you choose to evaluate it, use the documented repository marketplace, run /subway and click the board. Arrow keys move, jump and roll; P pauses, R restarts and Esc returns keyboard focus to the prompt. Check a completed coding turn actually pauses the game in your version. These are documented steps; no plugin was installed, hook enabled or terminal game run.

Cost and requirements

The plugin source is MIT-licensed. Its inspected input and game-state paths do not send a model request for ordinary play; that does not make the surrounding coding session or required account free. It runs within the host’s process through function hooks rather than a separate shell game. Terminal input, pane layout and that host API are therefore requirements to check together. No usage charge or performance measurement was made.

Limits to know

The registration module handles session start, pane rendering, turn completion and a plugin-store best score. The board advances local rules and posts finished scores back to that module. These selected files explain the mechanism without proving installation safety, current host compatibility or reliable pausing. The documented frame target is not a measured frame rate. Scores are stored on the local plugin installation rather than a documented cross-device account. The early-access dependency can change independently of the game.

Related work

• Claude Code: required interactive terminal host (complement)

Still unclear

• Installation, input focus and automatic pausing in a current host session were not tested.