The Emoji Game

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  splasg screen

Inspiration

The idea for EmojiGame came from noticing how often people use emojis to express full thoughts, jokes, or phrases. They act like a shared visual language. I wanted to turn that into a game where players could test how well they understand that language.

I was also inspired by community-driven games like Wordle and Reddit puzzles, which bring people together through creativity and curiosity.

What it does

EmojiGame is a word-guessing game where players interpret emoji sequences to find the hidden word or phrase. Each puzzle can represent anything from a movie title to a common saying.

Players can also create and share their own puzzles, keeping the game fresh and social. A daily hard challenge gives the community something to look forward to each day.

How we built it

The design was created in Figma, using a 1080x1080 layout optimized for Reddit. The interface uses bright, vibrant colors and clear typography to make the emojis stand out.

The game was developed using React and Devvit, with Tailwind CSS for hover effects and smooth animations. Emoji data is stored and processed through a simple emoji-to-word mapping system that supports both gameplay and user-created puzzles.

Challenges we ran into

A major challenge was making sure emojis looked consistent across platforms, since each device renders them differently. Another challenge was keeping the interface bright and lively without overwhelming the player.

We also had to find the right balance between simplicity and replayability. A small technical challenge involved calculating a hint strength for complex puzzles using LaTeX math:

$$ \text{Hint Strength} = \frac{1}{1 + d(e_1, e_2)} $$

where (d(e_1, e_2)) represents a measure of distance between the emoji sequence and the target word.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud of how clean and approachable the game feels. It is simple to understand yet encourages creativity from the community.

Designing a layout that works seamlessly within Reddit’s format was another highlight. The first working prototype features smooth interactions and hover effects.

What we learned

We learned how to design for both clarity and engagement - how color, motion, and simplicity can make a game feel alive.

We also learned how to encourage community participation and moderation through user-created content.

Finally, we discovered how much depth can come from something as small and universal as emojis.

What's next for The EmojiGame

Next, we plan to expand the game’s reach by adding player profiles, scoreboards, and weekly themed challenges.

We also want to build a submission system that lets users upload and rate each other's puzzles directly, making the experience fully community-powered.

The ultimate goal is to make EmojiGame a place where people can play, create, and connect through a language that everyone understands.

Built With

• css
• devvit
• figma
• html
• javascript
• json
• react
• reddit
• tailwind-css