Friday, 21 February 2025

Create a word-guessing game in Python

Here is an example to show you the basic game structure in Python. It is a simple word-guessing game in a command-line style. Command-line style games strip away graphical elements, allowing developers to concentrate on game logic and mechanics.

import random

def word_guessing_game():
    """Simulate a word guessing game."""
    words = ["python", "programming", "simulation", "algorithm", "developer"]
    secret_word = random.choice(words)
    guessed_word = ["_"] * len(secret_word)
    attempts = 5

    print("Welcome to the Word Guessing Game!")
    print(" ".join(guessed_word))

    while attempts > 0:
        guess = input("Guess a letter: ").lower()

        if guess in secret_word:
            for i, letter in enumerate(secret_word):
                if letter == guess:
                    guessed_word[i] = guess
            print("Correct!")
        else:
            attempts -= 1
            print(f"Wrong! You have {attempts} attempts left.")

        print(" ".join(guessed_word))

        if "_" not in guessed_word:
            print("Congratulations! You guessed the word!")
            return

    print(f"Game over! The word was: {secret_word}")

# Run the game
word_guessing_game()

Code Breakdown

1. Importing Required Modules

import random

• The random module is imported to randomly select a word from the list of words.

2. Defining the word_guessing_game Function

def word_guessing_game():

• This function encapsulates the entire logic of the word-guessing game.

3. Setting Up the Game

words = ["python", "programming", "simulation", "algorithm", "developer"]
secret_word = random.choice(words)
guessed_word = ["_"] * len(secret_word)
attempts = 5

• words: A list of words from which the game randomly selects one.
• secret_word: The word randomly chosen from the list using random.choice(words).
• guessed_word: A list of underscores (_) representing the letters of the secret_word. The length of this list matches the length of the secret_word.
• attempts: The number of attempts the player has to guess the word. Here, it’s set to 5.

4. Displaying the Initial Game State

print("Welcome to the Word Guessing Game!")
print(" ".join(guessed_word))

• A welcome message is displayed.
• The current state of the guessed_word is shown, with underscores representing unguessed letters. For example, if the secret_word is "python", the output will be: _ _ _ _ _ _.

5. Game Loop

while attempts > 0:

• The game runs in a loop as long as the player has attempts remaining (attempts > 0).

6. Player Input

guess = input("Guess a letter: ").lower()

• The player is prompted to guess a letter.
• The input is converted to lowercase using .lower() to ensure case insensitivity.

7. Checking the Guess

if guess in secret_word:
    for i, letter in enumerate(secret_word):
        if letter == guess:
            guessed_word[i] = guess
    print("Correct!")
else:
    attempts -= 1
    print(f"Wrong! You have {attempts} attempts left.")

• If the guessed letter is in the secret_word:

  • The code iterates through the secret_word using enumerate to find all positions where the guessed letter appears.
  • The corresponding underscores in guessed_word are replaced with the guessed letter.
  • A "Correct!" message is displayed.

• If the guessed letter is not in the secret_word:

  • The number of attempts is reduced by 1.
  • A "Wrong!" message is displayed, along with the remaining attempts.

8. Displaying the Updated Game State

print(" ".join(guessed_word))

• The updated state of guessed_word is displayed, showing the correctly guessed letters and underscores for unguessed letters.

9. Checking for Win Condition

if "_" not in guessed_word:
    print("Congratulations! You guessed the word!")
    return

• If there are no more underscores (_) in guessed_word, it means the player has guessed all the letters correctly.
• A "Congratulations!" message is displayed, and the function exits using return.

10. Game Over Condition

print(f"Game over! The word was: {secret_word}")

• If the player runs out of attempts (attempts == 0), the game ends.
• A "Game over!" message is displayed, revealing the secret_word.

11. Running the Game

word_guessing_game()

• The word_guessing_game function is called to start the game.

Example Gameplay

Scenario:

• secret_word = "algorithm"
• Player has 5 attempts.

Gameplay:

Welcome to the Word Guessing Game!
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Guess a letter: a
Correct!
a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Guess a letter: l
Correct!
a l _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Guess a letter: g
Correct!
a l g _ _ _ _ _ _
Guess a letter: o
Correct!
a l g o _ _ _ _ _
Guess a letter: m
Correct!
a l g o _ _ _ _ m
Guess a letter: t
Correct!
a l g o _ _ t _ m
Guess a letter: h
Correct!
a l g o _ _ t h m
Guess a letter: i
Correct!
a l g o _ i t h m
Guess a letter: r
Correct!
a l g o r i t h m
Congratulations! You guessed the word!

Key Features of the Game

1. Random Word Selection: The game randomly selects a word from a predefined list.
2. Dynamic Display: The game updates the display of guessed letters and underscores in real-time.
3. Attempts Counter: The player has a limited number of attempts to guess the word.
4. Win/Loss Conditions: The game checks if the player has guessed the word or run out of attempts.

How to Customize the Game

1. Add More Words: Expand the words list with more words.
2. Change Attempts: Modify the attempts variable to increase or decrease the difficulty.
3. Add Hints: Provide hints after a certain number of incorrect guesses.
4. Case Insensitivity: The game already handles lowercase input, but you can modify it to accept uppercase letters as well.