This project addresses the removal of the /buddy feature in Claude Code, providing a persistent, customizable AI coding companion that survives application updates. It targets Claude Code users who valued the original companion, offering enhanced customization with various species, rarities, and personality stats, integrated directly into the coding environment.

How It Works

Claude Code Buddy utilizes the Model Context Protocol (MCP) rather than binary patching, ensuring its longevity across Claude Code updates. This approach integrates the buddy as a set of stable extensions: an MCP server for tools and system prompts, a skill for /buddy commands, hooks for real-time code analysis (errors, diffs), and a status line for animated ASCII art. This MCP-based architecture avoids dependencies on Claude Code's internal binary structure, making it resilient to application updates and offering a stable, non-intrusive companion experience.

Quick Start & Requirements

• Primary install: Clone the repository, install dependencies with bun install, and run bun run install-buddy. Restart Claude Code and use the /buddy command.
• Prerequisites: Bun on PATH (curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash), Claude Code v2.1.80+, Linux or macOS (Windows is experimental), jq (apt install jq / brew install jq).
• Links: GitHub Repository, Bun Install

Highlighted Details

• Restores the /buddy feature using MCP, guaranteeing persistence across Claude Code updates.
• Features 18 distinct ASCII art species, each with unique animations, rarity tiers (Common to Legendary), and rarity-based colors.
• Buddies possess customizable personalities and 5 core stats (DEBUGGING, PATIENCE, CHAOS, WISDOM, SNARK), with a peak and dump stat.
• Provides real-time code commentary via speech bubbles, triggered by events like errors, test failures, or large diffs.
• Includes an interactive TUI (bun run pick) for discovering, previewing, saving, and managing buddies using the same generation algorithm as Claude Code.

Maintenance & Community

The project is actively maintained, with a roadmap indicating future features like leveling systems, buddy pair-programming, and cross-session memory. Contributions are welcomed via pull requests. Primary community interaction occurs through GitHub issues and discussions.

Licensing & Compatibility

• License: MIT.
• Compatibility: Permissive MIT license allows for commercial use and integration with closed-source projects. Compatible with Claude Code v2.1.80+. Windows support is noted as experimental.

Limitations & Caveats

Windows support is currently experimental. Rendering of ASCII art and speech bubbles may exhibit platform-specific alignment or display issues due to terminal Unicode handling variations. Buddy comments and status line updates require Claude Code to be restarted after installation or configuration changes, as MCP instructions are loaded at session start.