2026 · Social gaming concept
Guess-em
It started as a joke. I saw a reason to keep playing.
A small game with a bigger reason to return
A word-game screen a friend shared became Guess-em: a livelier way to guess, compete and keep playing. I designed the mobile identity, mode selection, guessing states and player results, with multiplayer and points at the centre of a broader rewards concept.
Inside this case study
A friend sent a joke. I saw a product opportunity.
The starting point was a simple word-game screen my friend shared jokingly. Two players, an incomplete word and a set of letters suggested a challenge. What interested me was the opportunity around that moment: could a lightweight guessing interaction become a more expressive, social product?
That observation became Guess-em. The original shared example is credited below. The Guess-em identity and mobile screens that follow show my design direction.
Guess it, then give the experience a personality
Guess-em simply means “guess it.” I wanted the product to have more life than a sequence of right and wrong answers. Duolingo’s playful energy was a reference for the feeling I wanted to explore: visible progress, personality and a reason to come back.
I carried a blue thought-cloud mark, an expressive wordmark, orange accents and rounded controls through the entry screens. The aim was to make the game feel welcoming before asking a player to solve anything.
Make the first choice easy
The mode screen puts single-player and multiplayer in one place, with distinct colours and person icons. A player can choose the kind of session first; settings remains a separate action.
That keeps the starting decision about play. The wider idea also includes points, play-to-earn and a proposed betting mode, but those financial modes are outside the screens shown here.
Keep the puzzle and the next action connected
The guessing screen puts the incomplete word above a synonym clue and a bank of selectable letters. The active gap gives the player a clear place to focus, while shuffle and hint controls sit alongside the available choices.
I designed the wrong-answer state to explain the result in the same context: the selected letter turns red, with an icon and a “Wrong” message. Feedback appears alongside the puzzle instead of moving the player into a different screen.
Make multiplayer readable at a glance
The two-player layout brings the active player, opponent and a 30-second timer into the same view. The blue player state establishes whose turn it is; the other player stays visible without competing with the puzzle.
The correct-answer screen uses a green selected letter, a celebration symbol and an “Excellent” message. Forfeit is available as an explicit action.
Give the round a life beyond the answer
The results celebrate progress, show a previous score and bring replay and home actions into reach. I also included sharing options so the end of a round can become a social moment.
Points are part of the product intent: a reason to build progress rather than play a disconnected round. The point economy and earning rules still need to be defined.
A result should close the loop
I designed distinct win and loss summaries, with the outcome, score and player information kept together. Colour, language and the result icon reinforce what happened, while the action placement stays familiar across both outcomes.
The result should be clear, with Replay easy to find. I would test both before refining the next version.
Verification before money-based play
The broader concept includes play-to-earn and a proposed betting mode. My product direction requires KYC before a player can initialise money-based activity, rather than presenting financial participation as the default way to enjoy the game.
Those modes, identity checks and financial flows are future scope. The supplied designs focus on the entry, guessing, multiplayer feedback and results experience.
What this work shows
This work connects an informal starting point with an original product identity and a set of mobile game flows. My contribution covers how players enter, choose a mode, understand a guess, see their opponent and close a round.
The next evidence should come from a functioning prototype and testing: whether people understand the next action, recognise whose turn it is and want another round.