WordAI User Guide

Welcome to WordAI - A sophisticated Wordle-like game with advanced bot analysis and dictionary exploration tools.

Table of Contents

Quick Start

  1. Access the Application: Navigate to http://localhost:8080 (or your deployed URL)
  2. Start Playing: The app opens in Play mode - start guessing immediately!
  3. Optional Login: Click the green "Sign In" link in the menu to create an account and track your games

Game Modes

WordAI offers five distinct modes accessible from the navigation menu:

Play Mode

Interactive word game where you have to guess the hidden word.

Auto Mode (Bot Demo)

Watch an AI bot play the game automatically.

Analyse Mode (Bot Performance)

Comprehensive analysis of bot performance across the entire dictionary of letters.

Dictionary Mode

Explore and analyze word dictionaries.

Admin Mode

Administrative functions (placeholder for future features).

Authentication

Login is optional! You can play as a guest or create an account to track your games.

Playing as a Guest

Creating an Account

  1. Click the green "Sign In" link in the menu
  2. Click "Sign up" on the login page
  3. Fill in your details:
    • Email address
    • Username
    • Full name
    • Password (minimum 6 characters)
  4. Click "Create Account"

Signing In

  1. Click "Sign In" in the menu
  2. Enter your username/email and password
  3. Click "Sign In"

Once logged in:

OAuth Options

Google and Apple Sign-In are available but require configuration (see AUTHENTICATION_SETUP.md).

How to Play

Basic Gameplay

  1. Start a Game
    • Navigate to Play mode
    • A random target word is selected
    • You have 6 attempts to guess it
  2. Make a Guess
    • Type a word in the input field
    • Click "Submit Guess" or press Enter
    • Only valid dictionary words are accepted
  3. Read the Feedback
    • Green: Letter is correct and in the right position
    • Yellow: Letter is in the word but wrong position
    • Gray: Letter is not in the word or the letter appears more times than in the target
  4. Win or Lose
    • Win: Guess the word within 6 attempts
    • Lose: Use all 6 attempts without finding the word
    • The target word is revealed after the game ends

Strategy Selection

Choose how the bot (or your hints) should suggest words:

Game Controls

Bot Analysis

Running Auto Mode (Bot Demo)

  1. Navigate to Auto mode
  2. Select a Strategy from the dropdown
  3. Choose Number of Games (1, 10, or 100)
  4. Click "Start Auto-Play"
  5. Watch the bot play in real-time

What You'll See:

Running Performance Analysis

  1. Navigate to Analyse mode
  2. Select a Strategy to test
  3. Choose Number of Games (100, 500, 1000, 5000)
  4. Click "Run Analysis"

Analysis Results Include:

Comparing Strategies

Run analysis for multiple strategies to compare:

Dictionary Explorer

Viewing Words

  1. Navigate to Dictionary mode
  2. Select word length (4, 5, 6, or 7 letters) from dropdown
  3. Browse the complete list of valid words

Sorting & Filtering

Sort Options:

Search:

Clear:

Understanding Statistics

Frequency Column:

Position Columns:

Exporting Data

Viewing Visualizations

Understanding Game Feedback

Response Codes

Each letter in your guess receives a code:

Code Color Meaning Example
G Green Correct letter, correct position Target: SLATE, Guess: STONE → S=G
A Yellow/Amber Correct letter, wrong position Target: SLATE, Guess: PARTS → A=A
R Gray/Red Letter not in target word Target: SLATE, Guess: PROUD → D=R
X Depends Letter exists but used too many times Target: SLATE, Guess: ALLOW → Second L=X

Complex Scenarios

Duplicate Letters:

Example:
Target: STALE (one E)
Guess: STEEL (two E's)
Result: S=G, T=G, first E=A, second E=X, L=A

Tips & Strategies

For Players

  1. Start with Common Letters
    • Use words with E, A, R, O, T, I
    • Example starting words: STARE, AROSE, LATER, IRATE
  2. Maximize Information
    • Use all unique letters in early guesses
    • Avoid repeating letters until you must
  3. Use Position Information
    • Pay attention to yellow/amber letters
    • Try them in different positions
  4. Eliminate Strategically
    • Gray letters are out - never use them again
    • Focus on remaining possibilities
  5. Think About Patterns
    • Common endings: -ED, -ER, -LY, -ING
    • Common starts: ST-, CH-, TH-, PR-

For Bot Analysis

  1. Test Multiple Strategies
    • No single strategy wins every game
    • Compare results across 1000+ games for accuracy
  2. Understand Entropy
    • Maximize Entropy finds optimal guesses
    • Balances information gain with risk
  3. Sample Size Matters
    • Run 1000+ games for reliable statistics
    • 100 games can have high variance

Keyboard Shortcuts

Troubleshooting

"Invalid word" Error

Login Issues

Game Not Starting

CSV Export Not Working

Data & Privacy

Guest Users

Registered Users

Local Data

Advanced Features

Dictionary Customization

Dictionaries can be configured in application.properties:

wordai.dictionary.4letter=path/to/4_letter_words.txt
wordai.dictionary.5letter=path/to/5_letter_words.txt
wordai.dictionary.6letter=path/to/6_letter_words.txt
wordai.dictionary.7letter=path/to/7_letter_words.txt

Strategy Configuration

Fixed-first-word strategy can be customized by modifying the bot strategy class.

Getting Help

Version Information

Happy Word Guessing!

WordAI is inspired by the popular Wordle game, enhanced with AI analysis and educational tools for studying word-guessing strategies.