Alias - Describe words without saying them in word guessing game
by•
Alias is a fun word game for groups where players explain words to their team without using words with the same root or translations from other languages. The goal is to explain as many words as possible within the time limit so your team can guess them.
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Hey folks! 👋
Today I want to share my journey of building a game for iOS and Android — as a complete newbie in mobile development.
Even though I have 13+ years of experience as a software engineer (mostly working with Angular), diving into React Native was a brand-new adventure for me.
The App idea
In Ukraine, we have an incredibly popular board game called Alias. It’s a word-guessing party game where players split into teams (minimum two people per team). One person explains the word without saying it, while their teammates try to guess it.
+1 point for each correct answer
-1 point for each skipped word
The team with the highest score wins! 🏆
Example:
I decided to create a mobile version so I could play it with friends anytime, anywhere.
Development
After watching just 5-10 YouTube videos on React Native and Expo, I rolled up my sleeves and got started.
Week 1: First working build
Week 2: Generated 7,000 words in 5 languages, organized by category and difficulty
Week 3: Debugging, optimization for Android, and lots of testing
Not bad for a first-timer, right?
Publishing
Building the app was only half the battle...
App Store:
After a week and multiple review rejections, the app was finally approved and released. 🎉
Play Store:
This one was much tougher. As an indie developer, I had to wait for 12 testers to opt in and use the app for 14 days (a Google Play policy). Add to that a few confusing rejections, and the whole process took over a month.
I assumed publishing to Android would be easier than iOS — I was VERY wrong.
What I’d do differently next time
Keep it simple
Focus on an MVP with just the core features. Release early, validate the idea, then iterate.
Launching on App Store first, then Android later
Trying to handle both platforms simultaneously created extra work and stress
Start with one language and theme
Managing translations and styles for multiple languages from the start added unnecessary complexity.
Don't over-engineer an MVP
Users never see my code. Get something usable out there, then polish it later.
Take breaks
After a month of intense development and publishing stress, I was completely burned out - which impacted my full-time job and personal life.
I hope my experience helps save you time and frustration if you're building your first mobile app.
Would love to hear what you think about the app - and happy to answer any questions in the comments!
Thanks for reading! 🙌