Harbor night-market SVG
We wrote these prompts and ran each one once, identically, on Gemini 4 Hydrogen, Gemini 3.8 Flash, and Gemma 4 31B through the Gemini API free tier on 14 November 2026 (America/Denver). Hydrogen and 3.8 Flash used thinking_level=MEDIUM; Gemma 4 has no thinking level. We did not edit the models’ code. Playable frames show the raw HTML or SVG (Three.js CDN URLs were rewritten to a local copy so the iframe does not call the public internet). Dollar figures are equivalent paid-tier list prices — labelled “equivalent paid cost; ran on free tier.” A 429 or quota error stops that model for the rest of the batch; leftover tests wait until the free-tier quota resets at midnight Pacific. Free-tier prompts may be used by Google to improve products. This is not a benchmark: one run per prompt, our tasks, our settings.
The prompt (copyable)
Create a single standalone SVG illustration (viewBox="0 0 800 500"). Do not use external fonts, images, scripts, or CSS files. Scene: a night market alley in a small harbor city. Paper lanterns hang over the street. A steamed-bun stall in the foreground has a hand-lettered English sign that reads exactly LANTERN BUNS. A calico cat sits on a parked scooter beside a canal, and the lanterns reflect in the water. A tram crosses a bridge above. Use flat vector shapes and a limited palette of navy, amber, coral, and cream. No photorealism, no embedded raster data. Return only the SVG markup, starting with <svg and ending with </svg>.
Side-by-side playable results
Each frame is sandboxed (scripts allowed, no same-origin). External network is blocked by CSP, except our local Three.js copy where needed.
Gemini 4 Hydrogen
brokenfinishReason=MAX_TOKENS; output was cut off mid-SVG. Hosted the truncated drawing unedited except appending a closing </svg> so the browser can paint it.
wrapped unedited SVG in a minimal HTML shell for iframe playback
2m 33s · 16,564 tokens · $0.1231 equiv. paid cost; ran on free tier
maxOutputTokens=16384 · thinking_level=MEDIUM
The reply hit maxOutputTokens and was cut off mid-file. The visible drawing still includes a LANTERN BUNS stall with a vendor and steam, paper lanterns and canal reflections, a tram on a bridge, a crescent moon, and a recognizable calico cat on a parked scooter. We appended a closing </svg> so the browser can paint the truncated markup; no other edits.
Gemini 3.8 Flash
errorThe API returned an error, including after one extra attempt. No output this session.
No output this session. The Gemini 3.8 Flash API returned HTTP 503 (“high demand”) or dropped the connection. We tried once more after the first failure and did not retry in a loop. This was not a quota / 429 error.
Gemma 4 31B
ranwrapped unedited SVG in a minimal HTML shell for iframe playback
2m 10s · 3,723 tokens · $0.0000 equiv. paid cost; ran on free tier
maxOutputTokens=16384 · thinking_level=n/a
Rendered a complete flat-vector night-market scene with a LANTERN BUNS stall, a string of yellow lanterns, a tram on a bridge, gold reflections on a dark canal, and a two-wheeled scooter. The scooter rider is a very simple shape and is not clearly a calico cat.
Metrics
| Model | Status | Wall time | Input | Thinking | Output | Equiv. paid cost | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini 4 Hydrogen | broken | 2m 33s | 180 | 4,693 | 11,691 | $0.1231 * | MAX_TOKENS |
| Gemini 3.8 Flash | error | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gemma 4 31B | ran | 2m 10s | 152 | 1,538 | 2,033 | $0.0000 * | STOP |
* Equivalent paid cost; ran on free tier. Hydrogen $1.50 / $7.50 per 1M; 3.8 Flash $0.75 / $3.75 per 1M through 31 Dec 2026; Gemma listed free ($0.00). Output price includes thinking tokens.
What we observed
- Gemini 4 Hydrogen: The reply hit maxOutputTokens and was cut off mid-file. The visible drawing still includes a LANTERN BUNS stall with a vendor and steam, paper lanterns and canal reflections, a tram on a bridge, a crescent moon, and a recognizable calico cat on a parked scooter. We appended a closing </svg> so the browser can paint the truncated markup; no other edits.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash: No output this session. The Gemini 3.8 Flash API returned HTTP 503 (“high demand”) or dropped the connection. We tried once more after the first failure and did not retry in a loop. This was not a quota / 429 error.
- Gemma 4 31B: Rendered a complete flat-vector night-market scene with a LANTERN BUNS stall, a string of yellow lanterns, a tram on a bridge, gold reflections on a dark canal, and a two-wheeled scooter. The scooter rider is a very simple shape and is not clearly a calico cat.
Observed facts only; we did not score the models and we did not fix their code.