Mystery Object

A web-based daily puzzle game where everyone in the world gets the same object each day and has up to 3 clues to solve it.

Features

• Daily global puzzle based on date
• Progressive reveal (clue 1 → clue 2 → clue 3 → full reveal)
• Guess validation through API
• Result view with clue count used
• Shareable results (Web Share API or clipboard fallback)
• Local streak tracking
• Mobile-first minimalist UI inspired by Wordle
• Admin page to add/edit daily puzzles
• MongoDB-backed puzzle storage
• Vercel-ready Next.js setup

Tech Stack

• Frontend: Next.js (React, App Router)
• Backend: Next.js API Routes (Node.js)
• Database: MongoDB

Folder Structure

.
├── app
│   ├── admin/page.js                  # Admin UI for creating daily puzzles
│   ├── api
│   │   ├── admin/puzzle/route.js      # Save or update a puzzle by date
│   │   └── puzzle
│   │       ├── guess/route.js         # Validate player guess
│   │       └── today/route.js         # Return today's puzzle clues
│   ├── globals.css                    # Mobile-friendly minimalist styling
│   ├── layout.js                      # Root layout and metadata
│   └── page.js                        # Main game UI/logic
├── lib/mongodb.js                     # Shared MongoDB client utility
├── models/puzzle.js                   # Puzzle payload + guess normalization helpers
├── scripts/seed.js                    # Starter puzzle seeding script
├── .env.example
├── next.config.mjs
└── package.json

MongoDB Puzzle Schema

Collection: puzzles

{
  date: "2026-03-01",         // YYYY-MM-DD, unique
  objectName: "Rubiks Cube",  // canonical answer
  clue1Image: "https://...",  // hardest clue
  clue2Image: "https://...",
  clue3Image: "https://...",  // easiest clue before full reveal
  fullImage: "https://...",   // full object image
  createdAt: "ISO timestamp",
  updatedAt: "ISO timestamp"
}

Getting Started

1. Install dependencies:

npm install

2. Create .env.local:

cp .env.example .env.local

3. Set your MongoDB values in .env.local:

MONGODB_URI=mongodb://127.0.0.1:27017
MONGODB_DB=mystery-object

4. Seed starter puzzles:

npm run seed

5. Start dev server:

npm run dev

Open:

• Game: http://localhost:3000
• Admin: http://localhost:3000/admin

API Endpoints

• GET /api/puzzle/today: returns today's puzzle images (without answer)
• POST /api/puzzle/guess: body { guess } → returns { isCorrect }
• POST /api/admin/puzzle: creates/updates puzzle by date

Deployment (Vercel)

1. Push to GitHub.
2. Import project in Vercel.
3. Add environment variables in Vercel project settings:
   • MONGODB_URI
   • MONGODB_DB
4. Deploy.

Because this is a standard Next.js app with API routes, it deploys directly on Vercel without extra server setup.