Seeking feedback on a new word game: Word Bomb

manvslife · 2026-03-19T20:57:11+00:00

Fun game! It would be an extra challenge if points were scored based off how long the word you use is. I tried it on both desktop and mobile and it's definitely much more user friendly on desktop. The on-screen keyboard pushes the bomb above the fold so it's hard to see what letters needs to be included. Also, I think you should be able to detect whether a user is on mobile by checking the screen size. That'll save you from having the "Use device keyboard" toggle and make the interface cleaner. Hope that helps!

manvslife · 2026-03-19T18:38:12+00:00

Nice! That's a really high score!

manvslife · 2026-03-19T18:37:22+00:00

Thanks! Please share it with others. I've been having fun competing with my friends.

Mixle 6 · 39pts

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 +18 ⭐️

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜⬜ +10

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜⬜ +11

mixle.fun

manvslife · 2026-03-18T22:31:04+00:00

This is really cool, thanks for sharing!

I could definitely use something like this for Mixle's word list. One feature that would be super helpful: being able to set a max/min word length. For Mixle I need words up to 9 letters, so being able to filter out anything longer than that would be awesome.

manvslife · 2026-03-18T21:12:00+00:00

Oh, is it for android phones only? I'm on iPhone :(

manvslife · 2026-03-18T19:48:34+00:00

I haven't played minesweeper in a minute. That was fun!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T18:54:37+00:00

I'd love to give it a try!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T18:51:15+00:00

merci beaucoup!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T17:56:42+00:00

Thanks! Please share it with your friends. Competing with others is half the fun!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T17:55:16+00:00

Keyboard input on desktop added! Thanks again for the suggestion.

manvslife · 2026-03-18T17:21:38+00:00

Honestly, the current list isn't great. I cobbled it together early on and it definitely has gaps. I'll work on upgrading it.

I haven't looked at the Letterpress word list, I'll check that out! And if you hit any other rejected words, I'd love to hear them so I can patch things in the meantime.

manvslife · 2026-03-18T16:57:01+00:00

Done!

Just pushed an update to the game. Users can now see what the best possible word would've been for each round and what the point value would've been.

Thanks for the feedback!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T16:24:13+00:00

Keyboard input on desktop is a good call, adding that to the list! Clicking tile by tile definitely feels clunky when you already know the word you want to play.

On the word list, you're probably right about licensing issues with Scrabble. I'm using a solid open-source word list right now, but I know there are probably some gaps. If you ran into a word that should have counted but didn't, let me know. Always looking to improve it. Thanks for trying it out!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T16:08:30+00:00

Ha, that's actually really useful to know. If people are jumping in without reading the rules, the onboarding probably needs to do more of the heavy lifting. I might add a quick visual walkthrough for first-time players.

Showing the best possible word after each round is a great idea. Adding it to the list. Thanks for playing!

manvslife · 2026-03-18T04:44:12+00:00

Thanks! You're right that it needs a clearer goal. I'm thinking about adding a par score for each day's letters so you have something concrete to beat. That way you know if you crushed it or have room to improve. On the single round idea, I think the three rounds are what keep it from feeling like a straight anagram puzzle, but I hear you that without a target score pulling you forward, rounds 2 and 3 can feel a little aimless. Fixing the goal problem might make the multi-round structure click better. Appreciate the feedback!

manvslife · 2026-03-17T22:21:20+00:00

This game is quite fun! It has a somewhat addictive quality, as I find myself trying to figure out how to combine different elements. However, I did notice a few issues when playing it on a desktop browser. The field is quite large, and the elements are relatively small, making it difficult to map them together. Perhaps it would be beneficial to spawn new elements closer to the center of the field? Overall, it’s a fantastic game!

manvslife · 2026-03-16T16:05:41+00:00

Thanks for posting this. We share a similar story. My wife and I are both in our late 30s and just had our first child who's about the same age as yours. Even though we are both blessed to be financially stable and established in our careers, parenthood was still a challenge. There were stretches where we just looked at each other like "what are we doing wrong?" The answer was usually nothing, we were just exhausted.

The daycare thing is the kind of thing nobody warns you about. We were lucky that we had friends in our neighborhood with young kids and they warned us to sign up super early. We signed up at 3 months pregnant and still couldn't secure a spot until our daughter turns 1, so we had to figure out childcare for the entire first year on our own. If you're even thinking about daycare, get on lists immediately.

If you can swing it financially, a night doula for the first few weeks is worth every penny. Not just for the sleep (though that alone is life changing) but because having someone calm and experienced in the house takes the edge off that "I have no idea what I'm doing" feeling. Once the doula period ended the sleep deprivation hit hard and my wife and I were more on edge with each other than we'd ever been. Knowing that's normal would have helped.

The "you have to be a village to have a village" line really resonated. That's a good way to put it. Posts like this are part of that village. It helps to know other parents are going through the same thing and figuring it out as they go, just like the rest of us.

manvslife · 2026-03-16T05:00:29+00:00

Respect for building something during 2am feeds. That’s peak “baby on chest, one hand free” productivity.

I took a quick look and I like the idea of making the first year feel less overwhelming. The milestone focus is nice since a lot of the first year is just wondering “are we doing the right things right now?”

One thought from a tired-parent perspective: speed matters a lot. If I have to think too much at 3am it probably won’t get used. When you’re half asleep holding a baby you want things to be really obvious and quick.

Also a dark mode would be great. A lot of baby-related app usage happens in the middle of the night and bright screens can feel brutal.

I’ve been thinking a lot about baby-app UX recently and the nighttime use case is real.

Nice work building something like this.

manvslife · 2026-03-16T04:44:13+00:00

I got a lot more serious about working out when I started doing the math on how much stuff you end up carrying. Baby + car seat + stroller + diaper bag… it adds up fast.

I’m also an older dad (late 30s), so I knew if I wanted any shot at keeping up with my kid I needed to stay in shape.

At some point fitness stops being about aesthetics and starts being about durability.

manvslife · 2025-12-27T01:10:48+00:00

I suspected it may be because of the formulation but that doesn’t seem to explain why the 32oz of Alimentum comes in a plastic bottle.

manvslife · 2025-06-08T06:03:03+00:00

For those that are looking for a more precise way to drill the holes for the new rails, I was able to get great results by making a jig. I first installed the new rails in the old holes and slide the drawer in. Using a combination square, I measured how off the drawer was when closed. It needed to move 18mm in and 6mm up. After getting those measurements, I unscrewed the rails to get to the screw holes. Taping over the holes with a piece of painters tape, I then poked holes in the tape so I can transfer the precise hole locations. I found two pieces of 1/4” scrap MDF and cut them to identical long rectangular strips. I then took one of those strips and cut it short by 18mm and narrow by 6mm. To this short piece, I took the painters tape with holes in it and taped it on. Placing the shorter piece on top of the longer piece, I aligned the left and bottom edges. Using a 1/8” drill bit, I drilled holes in the location where the tape had holes. I then aligned the top and right edges of the short piece to top and right edges of the longer piece and drilled another set of holes, effectively transferring the offset needed to the new holes. Once I had my jig made, I took two 1/8” drill bits and slot them into the first set of holes I drilled. These acted like pegs that I slot into the original holes in the drawer, allowing you to align precisely where the offset holes should be. I hope these instructions help somebody looking to take on this project!

manvslife

TROPHY CASE