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SANTIAGO BILLECI · TAGOWORKS

OPEN SOURCE · MIT · WINDOWS + LINUX

I build Ascendaraand every piece of it is open.

Ascendara is a game launcher and download manager that skips the extracting, the setup wizards, and the hassle. I design it, build it, and ship it. The app, installer, browser extension, remote companion, and docs engine are all on GitHub.

Read the case studyBrowse the source
Ascendara’s home page: a highlighted Forza Horizon 6 card beside Schedule I and GTA V, with Elden Ring, Red Dead Redemption 2, Forza Horizon 5, and BeamNG.drive below
installs
56K+
stars on GitHub
305
forks
30
languages
105
latest release
v11.4.1
01 / THE PROBLEM

Getting a game running shouldn’t take longer than playing it.

Downloads scattered across file hosts. Archives inside archives. Setup steps that change from game to game. I wanted one app that handled all of it: find a game, click twice, play.

What started as a side project in 2023 turned into the biggest thing I’ve made, with a real community, real bug reports, and contributors from around the world.

02 / WHAT IT DOES

Less setup. More play.

Visit ascendara.app
  1. 01

    Two-click downloads

    Supported games download straight in the app. No browser tabs, no extracting, no setup wizards.

  2. 02

    Ascend cloud backups

    Game saves backed up to the cloud, so a new machine doesn’t mean starting over.

  3. 03

    Rich game info

    Artwork, story, soundtrack details, and metadata for everything in your library.

  4. 04

    Browser integration

    Send a download from your browser to the app with the companion extension.

  5. 05

    Big Picture mode

    A controller-friendly interface for browsing and launching from the couch.

  6. 06

    Ascendara Retro

    A separate library for older console games, with artwork and remembered setups.

  7. 07

    Remote companion

    Check download progress from your phone or another computer, encrypted end to end.

  8. 08

    Local indexing

    A local index of thousands of games, so searching is instant.

  9. 09

    Themes

    Make the app your own with different themes and visual styles.

  10. 10

    105 languages

    12 languages ship with the app. A translation tool covers 93 more on demand.

03 / UNDER THE HOOD

Four layers, one app.

Build it from source
L1

Interface

React · shadcn/ui · Tailwind

Pages for home, search, library, downloads, and settings. Context providers handle auth, language, themes, and the guided tour.

L2

Main process

Electron · IPC

Modular IPC handlers for configuration, downloads, games, updates, Discord RPC, and window management.

L3

Binaries

Python

Small single-purpose programs, prebuilt and shipped with the app.

  • AscendaraDownloader
  • AscendaraGameHandler
  • AscendaraAchievementWatcher
  • AscendaraCrashReporter
  • AscendaraNotificationHelper
  • AscendaraTorrentHandler
  • AscendaraLanguageTranslation
L4

Services

API · Firebase

A scheduled scraper keeps the game index fresh server-side. Firebase powers accounts and Ascend.

Each Python binary does one job. The downloader can crash without taking the interface with it, and the crash reporter is there to tell me about it.

04 / THE ECOSYSTEM

Everything is open source.

github.com/Ascendara

Ascendara is more than one repository. Each part lives on its own, under a license that lets you read it, learn from it, and build on it.

01The app

Ascendara/ascendara

The desktop app itself. A React interface, an Electron main process, and the Python binaries that download, launch, and watch your games. Runs on Windows and Linux.

JavaScriptMIT License305
02Getting in

Ascendara/installer

The graphical installer. It always pulls the latest build, so a fresh install is never out of date.

PythonMIT License3
03From the browser

Ascendara/extension

A browser companion that sends supported download links straight into the app. No copying, no pasting.

JavaScriptMIT License0
04From anywhere

Ascendara/companion

A web app for checking and managing downloads from your phone or another computer, over encrypted communication.

TypeScriptMIT License1
05The manual

Ascendara/docs

Documentation for everything Ascendara, from first launch to building the app from source.

MarkdownCustom license0
06The docs engine

t-a-g-o/docsendara

The Next.js engine that renders ascendara.app/docs. It turns GitHub-hosted markdown into a full docs site, and you can drop it into your own project.

JavaScriptMIT License1
05 / JOIN IN

The best way to get a feature is to build it.

Accepted contributions are credited in the changelog. Start with the docs, pick an issue, or bring an idea to the Discord.

Contributing guideOpen issuesChangelogDiscord
06 / FREE TO USE

Website templates.

All templates
Fluorescent template preview

Fluorescent

Landing page

An expressive landing page with fluid motion and a colorful visual language.

Nightpanel template preview

Nightpanel

Dashboard & interface

A dark interface with a quiet layout and room for your content to breathe.

Lumina template preview

Lumina

Portfolio

A flexible starting point for a personal portfolio or your next landing page.

I’m Santiago, a developer, designer, and computer science student. I started with Minecraft command blocks and never stopped making things. More about me

HAVE SOMETHING IN MIND?

Let’s build something people actually use.

A website, an application, or an idea worth exploring. I read every message.