PETS WAR - CAT VS DOG

The fluffiest war on the internet!

Comment

Inspiration

I've always dreamed of becoming a programmer, even though I don't come from a technical background. I started learning Python multiple times but stopped halfway each time. When the Bolt Hackathon was announced, I saw an opportunity to finally bring an idea to life using tools made for people like me.

As a Fortnite fan, one of my favorite community games is "Red vs Blue". That inspired my first version of this project. Later, I decided to give it more emotional appeal by turning it into a pet-themed battle — Pets War: Cat vs Dog. It felt fun, relatable, and perfectly silly for Reddit.

What it does

Pets War is a competitive clicker game on Reddit. Users join either Team Cat or Team Dog — a permanent choice — and click a team-specific button to earn points.

  • One click allowed every 15 minutes

  • Real-time global scores

  • Personal stats showing user progress

  • Leaderboards featuring top clickers

It’s a simple mechanic that fuels community loyalty, competition, and fun.

How we built it

We used the following tools and technologies:

  • Bolt – for building and deploying the app

  • Reddit Devvit – to embed the app directly in a subreddit

  • Redis – for storing click data, scores, and user info

  • Node.js (serverless) – to run backend game logic and APIs

  • TypeScript – for reliable, structured development

  • React (Devvit UI) – for creating the in-Reddit game interface

  • ChatGPT – for idea generation, logic writing, and debugging help

  • Reddit Discord Community – for platform-related support and insights

Challenges we ran into

The biggest issue was that the game worked on desktop, but broke on mobile. I spent hours trying to fix it and used up a lot of tokens. Eventually, I found out via Reddit Discord that it was a known Devvit limitation, not a bug in my code.

Learning to use Redis and building logic around cooldowns as a non-coder was another hurdle, but I managed to overcome it step by step.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

  • Built and launched a working Reddit game as a non-programmer

  • Overcame technical roadblocks and platform bugs

  • Created something that Reddit users can actually play and enjoy

  • Learned how to structure a real app using tools like Bolt and Redis

  • Gained confidence to build more apps in the future

What we learned

  • Anyone can build apps with the right tools and community support

  • Asking for help is often the smartest thing you can do

  • Simple ideas work when they’re executed with care and personality

  • Gained practical knowledge of backend logic, UI structure, and database use

  • Learned to use Bolt, Redis, Devvit, React, and Node.js

What's next for PETS WAR - CAT VS DOG

Looking ahead, I want to expand Pets War into something even more fun and flexible.

  • Add seasonal pet battles (e.g., Rabbit vs Turtle, Parrot vs Hamster)

  • Introduce limited-time themes and events (e.g., Halloween specials)

  • Add animations or sound effects for a more dynamic experience

  • Improve mobile UI when platform limitations are resolved

  • Make it possible for the game to be embedded in more subreddits

Pets War started as a silly idea, but it became my first real step into building. I'm excited to keep learning and shipping more projects with Bolt.

Built With

Share this project:

Updates