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Documentation Directory

API Overview

Complete guide to the HELIX Gaming DB REST API architecture, conventions, and status codes.

API Overview

Welcome to the HELIX Gaming DB REST API documentation.

HELIX Gaming DB is a modern, static REST API hosted directly via GitHub Pages CDN. It provides instant access to verified video game metadata, developer studio profiles, release dates, gameplay categories, and official high-resolution artwork assets.

🌐 Base URL & Domain Flexibility

The API can be queried over HTTPS using either the default GitHub Pages hostname or custom organization domains:

  • Cloudflare Worker Unified Gateway (Mode 2 — Recommended): 
    https://api.helix-origin.club/api/

    (Federation-aware gateway that automatically searches and merges across all 4 volume shards)

  • Cloudflare Direct Shard Proxy (Mode 1): 
    https://api.helix-origin.club/helix-gaming-db-{NN}/api/
  • GitHub Pages Origin Shards: 
    https://www.helix-origin.club/helix-gaming-db-{NN}/api/

All endpoints are versioned under /api/ and serve static, UTF-8 encoded JSON payloads with standard CORS headers (Access-Control-Allow-Origin: *).

🏛️ Three-Tier API Architecture

HELIX Gaming DB organizes endpoints across three purpose-built tiers:

Tier Path Target Audience & Purpose Key Capabilities
Root Entrypoint /api/manifest.json All API consumers High-level status, version discovery, and gateway routing
Tier 1: Client API /api/v1/ Game launchers & mobile frontends Stable, flat, ultra-lightweight game and developer endpoints
Tier 2: Relational API /api/v2/ Modern apps & contributors Multidimensional discovery (genres, platforms, tags, publishers, stats, PR templates)
Tier 3: Adult 18+ API /api/v3/ NSFW launchers & adult visual novel apps Dedicated, isolated adult gaming database with strict content segregation

⚡ Architecture & Design Principles

  1. Pure Static JSON: Every API resource corresponds directly to a pre-generated, static JSON file on disk. This guarantees sub-millisecond retrieval times without database query overhead or backend compute crashes.
  2. CDN Edge Caching: Responses are automatically cached at Cloudflare and GitHub Pages edge points across the globe, ensuring maximum throughput and 99.99% availability.
  3. Zero Authentication & No Rate Limits: Anyone can query the API without obtaining API keys, OAuth tokens, or user accounts.
  4. Predictable Slugs: Resources are referenced using lowercase kebab-case slugs (e.g. final-fantasy-xiv-a-realm-reborn, crossdressing-in-camelot, ys-viii-lacrimosa-of-dana).

📖 Navigation & Reference Links

  • Endpoints Reference — Detailed request and response documentation for all /api/v1/, /api/v2/, and /api/v3/ routes.
  • JSON Schema Reference — Formal Draft 2020-12 JSON schema specifications for games, developers, and manifests.
  • Contributing Guide — Step-by-step instructions for adding new games, fork/PR contribution workflows, and issue templates.
  • Technical Wiki — Architecture deep dives, curation standards, and artwork format requirements.