Build a daily word game with your own word list

The rules that make a word game feel fair

Most daily word games are built from the same few decisions. Getting them right matters more than the colours.

1. Two lists, not one. The answer list is short and hand-picked: common words people know. The allowed-guesses list is much longer, so a player's reasonable guess is never rejected as "not a word". Mixing the two makes puzzles either impossible or trivial.
2. One puzzle per day for everyone. Without a server, the game works out the day's word from the date: count the days since a start date and use that number to pick from the answer list. Every player who opens it on the same date sees the same puzzle. Decide whether "today" follows the player's own time zone or a fixed one.
3. Clear feedback for each letter. Right letter in the right place, right letter in the wrong place, not in the word. Repeated letters are where homemade versions go wrong: if the answer has one E and the guess has two, only one should be marked.
4. Colour isn't the only signal. Colour-blind players need shapes, patterns or a high-contrast mode, and screen readers need each result read out in words.
5. A fixed number of tries. Six is the familiar count for five-letter words; longer words may need more.

Beyond the five-letter grid

The grid-of-guesses format is only one kind of word puzzle. A word game maker should let you choose the format that suits your audience:

Anagram of the day

Seven letters, find as many words as possible, with one word that uses them all.

Connections-style groups

Sixteen words to sort into four hidden groups, with one mistake allowed per group.

Missing letter chain

Fill the gap to make two words, such as SUN _ _ _ ER.

Themed vocabulary

A word from a subject list, such as anatomy terms for students, cheese names for a deli newsletter or technical terms for a product's fans.

Whichever format, say how long a puzzle should take and how hard the words are. "Common words a twelve-year-old knows" and "hard enough for crossword regulars" produce very different lists.

Describing it to Anticode

A useful request includes the format, the length and where the words come from: "A daily five-letter word game about baking, six guesses, answers from this list of 60 words, and accept any common English five-letter word as a guess. Show a streak and a guess distribution. A Share button copies a text grid of squares and the day number." Paste your answer list into the request, or ask the model to write one around your theme and then check it yourself, because a list of 60 needs a human read for obscure or awkward words.

The whole game, both word lists included, is written into one HTML document, so it loads once and plays with no connection. Long allowed-guess lists add to the file size, which matters a little on slow phones; tens of thousands of short words still fit comfortably.

Streaks, stats and sharing

Streaks and the guess distribution save in the player's browser with local storage. They survive closing the tab but not switching devices or clearing browser data, so say that quietly in the stats panel. Sharing is copy-to-clipboard text: the day number, the score and a grid of coloured squares, which players paste into a chat or a social post. The game itself never posts anything.

What it can't do

• No global leaderboard or friends' scores. Each player sees only their own history.
• No hiding the answer list. The words are in the page's code, so a determined player can find tomorrow's. That's true of many daily word games; for a prize competition, it's a reason not to use one.
• No pushing a new puzzle. The schedule comes from the list. When it runs out, ask for more words, or have it start again from the top.
• English by default. The builder is in English; a game in another language works only if you supply that language's word lists.

For crossword-style clue solving, see the crossword maker. For learners rather than puzzlers, flashcards or spelling practice may be a better format.

Questions people ask

Can I put the game on my own domain?

Yes, on a paid plan. You can also publish it to a free anticode.dev address, which carries a small badge.

Can I collect email addresses from players?

Yes. Add a newsletter sign-up to the results screen; addresses reach you through Anticode's form pipeline and can go on to Mailchimp or Kit.

Can I see how many people played?

Site analytics show page views per day and where visitors came from. They don't record individual guesses or scores.