Inspiration
I was inspired by my love for multiplayer party games like Skribbl.io, which I often played with friends. I realized there wasn’t a fun, competitive spelling game online where anyone could create a lobby, invite friends, and battle it out in real time. I also saw the potential for teachers and ESL learners to use something like this to make spelling more engaging and interactive.
What it does
Spell Duel is a real-time, multiplayer spelling game you play in your browser. You can create or join a lobby, choose an avatar, and compete to spell words read out loud by the game. Rounds are timed, and you get points for correct answers. You can play solo, with friends, or as a class. At the end, everyone sees the podium, rankings, and a review of the words used.
How I built it
I built Spell Duel using React for the frontend, Node.js and Socket.io for the backend, and CSS for the styling. I used the DiceBear API so players can customize their avatars. For words and definitions, I found a comprehensive dataset from Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (1913) on Kaggle, and processed it into easy, medium, and hard lists. Socket.io handles the real-time multiplayer logic, lobbies, and round timing.
Challenges I ran into
The biggest challenge was finding and organizing a complete wordlist with good definitions. After lots of searching, I found a reliable set on Kaggle, but cleaning and sorting the data took some work. Another issue was pronunciation—most free APIs weren’t good enough or reliable, so right now I use browser text-to-speech, which isn’t always consistent. Making multiplayer work smoothly and managing things like players leaving or host transfer also required a lot of learning and debugging.
Accomplishments that I'm proud of
I'm proud I was able to bring a new twist to spelling games, especially making it easy for anyone (even teachers) to set up a game and get everyone involved. I think the real-time multiplayer experience, the animated podium, and sound effects all make Spell Duel feel lively and unique.
What I learned
Building Spell Duel taught me a lot about real-time web apps and how to handle synchronization with Socket.io. I learned about managing state between multiple users, edge cases, and browser quirks for audio playback. I also realized the value of small UX touches—like an animated clock or a dramatic podium—for making an app feel polished and memorable.
What's next for Spell Duel
Next, I want to test and deploy Spell Duel so teachers and students can use it in real classrooms. I have a teacher friend who wants to try it with her class, which I’m excited for! I’d also like to add things like mobile support, leaderboards, new game modes, and better audio. Seeing students actually enjoy learning with Spell Duel would be the ultimate goal.
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