diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index d10d749..01f9cb9 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1,6 +1,2 @@
-.venv
-.env
-db.sqlite
-flask_session
-__pycache__
-app.log
\ No newline at end of file
+build/
+.vscode/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/dockerfile b/dockerfile
deleted file mode 100644
index 36948e9..0000000
--- a/dockerfile
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,22 +0,0 @@
-FROM python:alpine
-
-# Set the working directory
-WORKDIR /app
-
-# Copy the requirements file into the container
-COPY requirements.txt .
-
-# Install the required packages
-RUN pip install --no-cache-dir -r requirements.txt
-RUN pip install gunicorn
-
-# Copy the rest of the application code into the container
-COPY src src
-COPY templates templates
-COPY static static
-
-# Expose the port the app runs on
-EXPOSE 5000
-
-# run the application
-ENTRYPOINT [ "gunicorn",  "-b", ":5000", "--access-logfile", "-", "--error-logfile", "-", "src.wsgi:app" ]
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/makefile b/makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a65aaad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+# Directories
+INCLUDE_DIR = inc
+SRC_DIR = src
+BUILD_DIR = build
+
+# Compiler and linker settings
+CXX = g++
+LIBS = 
+CXXFLAGS = -std=c++17 -I $(INCLUDE_DIR)
+
+# Source and object files
+SRC = $(wildcard $(SRC_DIR)/*.cpp)
+
+# Target executable
+UNAME := $(shell uname -s)
+BUILD_DIR := $(BUILD_DIR)/$(UNAME)
+OBJ_DIR := $(BUILD_DIR)/objs
+BIN = $(BUILD_DIR)/main
+
+# Object files corresponding to the source files (now in obj directory)
+OBJS = $(addprefix $(OBJ_DIR)/, $(addsuffix .o, $(basename $(notdir $(SRC)))))
+
+# development target with debugging
+dev: CXXFLAGS += -g -Wall -Wformat
+dev: all
+
+# Release target
+release: CXXFLAGS += -O3
+release: all
+
+# Create directories for build output
+dirs:
+	@mkdir -p $(BUILD_DIR)
+	@mkdir -p $(OBJ_DIR)
+
+# Clear build directory
+clear:
+	@find $(OBJ_DIR) -type f -name '*.o' -exec rm -f {} +
+
+# Pattern rule for source files in src directory
+$(OBJ_DIR)/%.o: $(SRC_DIR)/%.cpp
+	$(CXX) $(CXXFLAGS) -c -o $@ $<
+
+all: dirs clear $(BIN)
+	@echo Build complete
+
+$(BIN): $(OBJS)
+	$(CXX) -o $@ $^ $(CXXFLAGS) $(LIBS)
+
+clean:
+	rm -rf $(BUILD_DIR)
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/requirements.txt b/requirements.txt
deleted file mode 100644
index bcf2451..0000000
--- a/requirements.txt
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,5 +0,0 @@
-#psycopg2-binary
-python-dotenv
-flask-session
-requests
-flask
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/run.sh b/run.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index 461da21..0000000
--- a/run.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,5 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-
-[ ! -f .env ] || export $(grep -v '^#' .env | xargs)
-
-flask --app src.wsgi.py --debug run 
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/main.cpp b/src/main.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d1fd9d0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+#define CROW_STATIC_DIRECTORY "../static"
+#include <crow.h>
+
+int main() {
+    crow::SimpleApp app;
+
+    CROW_ROUTE(app, "/")([] {
+        return "hello world";
+    });
+
+    app.port(8080).multithreaded().run();
+}
+
+// note: replace mustache with jinja
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/routes/error_handlers.py b/src/routes/error_handlers.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 34e055e..0000000
--- a/src/routes/error_handlers.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,48 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-from flask import Blueprint, render_template
-from os import getenv as env
-import logging
-
-import src.routes.snake as snake
-
-
-# Create blueprint
-bp = Blueprint(
-    'error_handlers',
-    __name__,
-    template_folder=env('TEMPLATE_FOLDER', default='../templates'),
-    static_folder=env('STATIC_FOLDER', default='../static')
-)
-
-
-# Create logger
-log = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-
-# Route for 500 error
-@bp.route('/500')
-@bp.app_errorhandler(500)
-def internal_server_error(error=None):
-    if error is not None:
-        log.error("Internal server error: %s", error)
-    return render_template('errors/500.html'), 500
-
-
-# Route for 404 error
-@bp.route('/404')
-@bp.app_errorhandler(404)
-def not_found(error=None):
-    if error is not None:
-        log.warning("Page not found: %s", error)
-    scores = snake.get_leaderboard()
-    token = snake.generate_start_token()
-    return render_template('errors/404.html', scores=scores, token=token, cap_key=env('CAP_KEY', default='')), 404 if error is not None else 200
-
-
-# Route for 400 error
-@bp.route('/400')
-@bp.app_errorhandler(400)
-def bad_request(error=None):
-    if error is not None:
-        log.warning("Bad request: %s", error)
-    return render_template('errors/400.html', error=error), 400
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/routes/generic.py b/src/routes/generic.py
deleted file mode 100644
index cf350dd..0000000
--- a/src/routes/generic.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,65 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-from flask import Blueprint, render_template, request, abort, send_file
-from os import getenv as env
-import logging, os
-
-
-# Create blueprint
-bp = Blueprint(
-    'generic',
-    __name__,
-    template_folder=env('TEMPLATE_FOLDER', default='../templates'),
-    static_folder=env('STATIC_FOLDER', default='../static')
-)
-
-
-# Create logger
-log = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-
-# Route for index page
-@bp.route('/')
-def index():
-    return render_template('index.html')
-
-
-# Route for favicon
-@bp.route('/favicon.ico')
-def favicon():
-    return send_file('../static/content/other/favicon.ico')
-
-
-# Route for robots.txt
-@bp.route('/robots.txt')
-def robots():
-    return send_file('../static/content/other/robots.txt')
-
-
-# Route for sitemap.xml
-@bp.route('/sitemap.xml')
-def sitemap():
-    return send_file('../static/content/other/sitemap.xml')
-
-
-# Catch-all route for generic pages
-@bp.route('/<path:filename>')
-def catch_all(filename):
-    try: return render_template(f'pages/{filename if filename.endswith(".html") else filename + ".html"}')
-    except Exception as e:
-        # If the template is not found, check if it is a directory
-        os_path = os.path.join(bp.template_folder, 'pages', filename)[3:]
-        if os.path.isdir(os_path):
-            # walk through the directory and find all files
-            pages = []
-            for root, dirs, files_in_dir in os.walk(os_path):
-                for file in files_in_dir:
-                    pages.append(os.path.relpath(os.path.join(root, file), os_path))
-                for dir in dirs:
-                    pages.append(os.path.relpath(os.path.join(root, dir), os_path) + '/')
-
-            # If it is a directory, render a directory page
-            if not filename.endswith('/'): filename += '/'
-            return render_template('bases/directory.html', directory=filename, pages=pages)
-        
-        # If it is a file, return a 404 error
-        abort(404, f"Template '{filename}' not found: {e}")
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/routes/snake.py b/src/routes/snake.py
deleted file mode 100644
index beb49f6..0000000
--- a/src/routes/snake.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,146 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-from flask import Blueprint, abort, request, redirect
-from os import urandom, getenv as env
-import src.utils.database as database
-import src.utils.cap as cap
-import logging, datetime, threading, time
-
-
-# Create blueprint
-bp = Blueprint(
-    'snake', 
-    __name__,
-    template_folder=env('TEMPLATE_FOLDER', default='../templates'),
-    static_folder=env('STATIC_FOLDER', default='../static')
-)
-
-
-# Create logger
-log = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-
-# Create database instance
-db = database.Database(db_name=env('DB_NAME', default='db.sqlite'))
-db.execute('CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS snake_scores (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT, name TEXT, score INTEGER)')
-db.execute('''CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS snake_tokens (
-    id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
-    token TEXT UNIQUE NOT NULL,
-    created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP,
-    ip TEXT UNIQUE NOT NULL
-)''')
-
-# Input validation function
-def valid_length(value, min_length=1, max_length=100):
-    if not isinstance(value, str):
-        return False
-    return min_length <= len(value) <= max_length
-
-
-def valid_score(score, game_token):
-    start_time = db.execute('SELECT created_at FROM snake_tokens WHERE token = ?', (game_token,)).fetchone()
-    if not start_time:
-        log.error("Game token not found.")
-        return False
-    
-    start_time = datetime.datetime.fromisoformat(start_time[0])
-    current_time = datetime.datetime.now()
-    elapsed_time = (current_time - start_time).total_seconds()
-
-    if elapsed_time < score / 10 * 3 + 10: # assuming that each point takes 3 seconds to achieve and 10 seconds to start the game and do captcha
-        log.error("Score is too high for the elapsed time.")
-        return False
-    
-    if score <= 0 or score > 10000:  # Arbitrary upper limit for scores
-        log.error("Score is out of valid range.")
-        return False
-    
-    if score % 10 != 0:
-        log.error("Score is not a multiple of 10.")
-        return False
-    
-    # delete the token after score validation
-    db.execute('DELETE FROM snake_tokens WHERE token = ?', (game_token,))
-    log.info(f"Score {score} validated successfully for token {game_token}.")
-
-    return True
-
-
-# Route for score submission
-@bp.route('/snake/submit', methods=['POST'])
-def submit_score():
-    name = request.form.get('name')
-    score = request.form.get('score')
-    captcha_token = request.form.get('cap-token')
-    game_token = request.form.get('game_token')
-
-    if not cap.verify_captcha(captcha_token):
-        log.error("Captcha verification failed.")
-        abort(400, "Captcha verification failed")
-
-    if not name or not score or not captcha_token or not game_token:
-        log.error("Name, score, captcha token, or game token is missing.")
-        abort(400, "Missing required fields")
-    
-    if not valid_length(name, min_length=3, max_length=15):
-        log.error("Invalid name length.")
-        abort(400, "Name must be between 3 and 15 characters long.")
-    
-    if not valid_score(int(score), game_token):
-        log.error("Invalid score.")
-        abort(400, "Score not vilid, so either you are trying to cheat the leaderboard or something is seriously wrong.")
-
-    try:
-        db.execute('INSERT INTO snake_scores (name, score) VALUES (?, ?)', (name, int(score)))
-        db.execute('DELETE FROM snake_tokens WHERE token = ?', (game_token,))
-        log.info(f"Score submitted: {name} - {score}")
-        return redirect('/404')
-    
-    except Exception as e:
-        log.error(f"Database error: {e}")
-        abort(500, "Internal server error while submitting score.")
-
-
-# Generate a unique game token
-def generate_start_token():
-    """Generate a unique start token for the game."""
-    token = urandom(16).hex()
-    ip = request.headers.get('X-Forwarded-For', request.remote_addr)
-
-    ip_token = db.execute('SELECT token FROM snake_tokens WHERE ip = ?', (ip,)).fetchone()
-    if ip_token:
-        log.info(f"Token already exists for IP: {ip}, reusing token.")
-        return ip_token[0]
-
-    log.info(f"Generated start token: {token}")
-    db.execute('INSERT INTO snake_tokens (token, ip) VALUES (?, ?)', (token, ip))
-    return token
-
-
-# Get leaderboard scores
-def get_leaderboard():
-    """Fetch scores from the leaderboard."""
-    try:
-        scores = db.execute('SELECT name, score FROM snake_scores ORDER BY score DESC').fetchall()
-        leaderboard = [{'position': i + 1, 'name': score[0], 'score': score[1]} for i, score in enumerate(scores)]
-        log.info("Leaderboard fetched successfully.")
-        return leaderboard
-    except Exception as e:
-        log.error(f"Error fetching leaderboard: {e}")
-        return []
-
-
-# Clear all tokens older than 1 hour
-def clear_old_tokens():
-    while True:
-        try:
-            one_hour_ago = datetime.datetime.now() - datetime.timedelta(hours=1)
-            db.execute('DELETE FROM snake_tokens WHERE created_at < ?', (one_hour_ago,))
-            log.info("Old tokens cleared.")
-        except Exception as e:
-            log.error(f"Error clearing old tokens: {e}")
-        time.sleep(3600)  # Run every hour
-
-
-# Start the token clearing thread
-token_thread = threading.Thread(target=clear_old_tokens, daemon=True)
-token_thread.start()
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/utils/cap.py b/src/utils/cap.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 456e7c5..0000000
--- a/src/utils/cap.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,42 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-from os import getenv as env
-import requests, logging
-
-
-# Create logger
-log = logging.getLogger(__name__)
-
-
-# Function to verify CAPTCHA response
-def verify_captcha(token: str) -> bool:
-    """
-    Verify the CAP response token with the CAP server.
-    
-    Args:
-        token (str): The CAP response token to verify.
-
-    Returns:
-        bool: True if the token is valid, False otherwise.
-    """
-    if not token:
-        return False
-
-    try:
-        response = requests.post(
-            f"https://cap.alfieking.dev/{env('CAP_KEY', default='')}/siteverify",
-            json={
-                'secret': env('CAP_SECRET', default=''),
-                'response': token,
-            },
-            timeout=10
-        )
-
-        response.raise_for_status()
-        if response.status_code != 200:
-            log.error("CAPTCHA verification failed with status code: %s", response.status_code)
-            return False
-        return response.json().get('success', False)
-    
-    except Exception as e:
-        log.error("Error verifying CAPTCHA: %s", e)
-        return False
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/utils/database.py b/src/utils/database.py
deleted file mode 100644
index c8a36a2..0000000
--- a/src/utils/database.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,18 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-import sqlite3
-
-# Database class
-class Database:
-    def __init__(self, db_name='db.sqlite'):
-        self.connection = sqlite3.connect(db_name, check_same_thread=False)
-        self.cursor = self.connection.cursor()
-
-    def execute(self, query, params=None):
-        if params is None:
-            params = []
-        self.cursor.execute(query, params)
-        self.connection.commit()
-        return self.cursor
-    
-    def close(self):
-        self.connection.close()
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/src/wsgi.py b/src/wsgi.py
deleted file mode 100644
index 47d4970..0000000
--- a/src/wsgi.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,58 +0,0 @@
-# Imports
-from flask import Flask
-from flask_session import Session
-
-from dotenv import load_dotenv
-from os import getenv as env, listdir
-import logging, importlib
-
-
-# Load env
-load_dotenv()
-
-
-# Create console log handler
-console_log = logging.StreamHandler()
-console_log.setFormatter(logging.Formatter("\033[1;32m%(asctime)s\033[0m - \033[1;34m%(levelname)s\033[0m - \033[1;31m%(name)s\033[0m - %(message)s"))
-console_log.setLevel(logging.INFO)
-
-# Create file log handler
-file_log = logging.FileHandler(env('LOG_FILE', default='app.log'), mode=env('LOG_MODE', default='a'))
-file_log.setFormatter(logging.Formatter("%(asctime)s - %(levelname)s - %(name)s - %(message)s"))
-file_log.setLevel(logging.DEBUG)
-
-# Add handlers to the logger
-log = logging.getLogger()
-log.setLevel(logging.DEBUG)
-log.addHandler(console_log)
-log.addHandler(file_log)
-log.info("Logging initialized")
-
-
-# Create flask app
-app = Flask(
-    __name__,
-    template_folder=env('TEMPLATE_FOLDER', default='../templates'),
-    static_folder=env('STATIC_FOLDER', default='../static')
-)
-
-# Configure sessions
-app.config["SESSION_PERMANENT"] = True
-app.config["SESSION_TYPE"] = "filesystem"
-Session(app)
-
-
-# Load routes
-routes_dir = env('ROUTES_DIR', default='src/routes')
-for filename in listdir(routes_dir):
-    if not filename.endswith('.py') and filename.startswith('__'):
-        continue
-
-    module_name = f"{routes_dir.replace('/', '.')}.{filename[:-3]}"
-    try:
-        module = importlib.import_module(module_name)
-        if hasattr(module, 'bp'):
-            app.register_blueprint(module.bp)
-            log.info(f"Registered blueprint: {module_name}")
-    except Exception as e:
-        log.error(f"Failed to register blueprint {module_name}: {e}")
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/templates/bases/base.html b/templates/bases/base.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/bases/base.html
rename to templates/bases/base.jinja
diff --git a/templates/bases/directory.html b/templates/bases/directory.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/bases/directory.html
rename to templates/bases/directory.jinja
diff --git a/templates/errors/400.html b/templates/errors/400.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/errors/400.html
rename to templates/errors/400.jinja
diff --git a/templates/errors/404.html b/templates/errors/404.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/errors/404.html
rename to templates/errors/404.jinja
diff --git a/templates/errors/500.html b/templates/errors/500.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/errors/500.html
rename to templates/errors/500.jinja
diff --git a/templates/index.html b/templates/index.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/index.html
rename to templates/index.jinja
diff --git a/templates/pages/events/crittersmk.html b/templates/pages/events/crittersmk.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/pages/events/crittersmk.html
rename to templates/pages/events/crittersmk.jinja
diff --git a/templates/pages/events/paws-n-pistons.html b/templates/pages/events/paws-n-pistons.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/pages/events/paws-n-pistons.html
rename to templates/pages/events/paws-n-pistons.jinja
diff --git a/templates/pages/toaster.html b/templates/pages/toaster.jinja
similarity index 100%
rename from templates/pages/toaster.html
rename to templates/pages/toaster.jinja