🧩 Collaborative Crossword Game – FeedNPlay

This project is a collaborative crossword puzzle game developed for the Social & Collaborative Computing course at the University of Coimbra. It aims to demonstrate a functional prototype of a collaborative artefact designed to serve as a space for building bridges between community members, encouraging dialogue between disciplines (Design & Multimedia and Informatics), and fostering a sense of belonging through playful collaboration.

📚 Project Proposal & Theoretical Framework

Inspired by Byung-Chul Han’s concept of the transition from the “age of things” to the “age of non-things,” the artefact aims to re-signify presence and foster new relational forms through digital interaction. The game promotes human computing, encouraging participants to move from passive information consumers to active co-creators.

The design is guided by key conceptual drivers:

• Creating value for a community through shared goals.
• Mobilizing participation across time and space.
• Promoting transitions between coordination, cooperation, and co-construction.
• Raising collective awareness through visual feedback and collaborative gameplay.

The artefact explores multiple synchronicities, allowing both synchronous and asynchronous participation, and supports different modes of interaction (local and remote).

🚀 Technologies Used

• Java
• Spring Boot – Backend framework for managing game logic and server-side communication.
• Thymeleaf – Templating engine for rendering dynamic web pages.
• WebSockets – Enables real-time communication between clients and server.

🧠 System Architecture

The application is composed of two main web interfaces:

• /server – Simulates the FeedNPlay public display, showing the crossword puzzle, enemy progress, and player interactions.
• /client – Interface for players to join the game, create avatars, and submit word guesses.

Real-Time Interaction Flow

1. Players connect to /client via QR code.
2. They observe the game state on /server, including clues and enemy position.
3. Players submit guesses; the backend processes them.
4. Feedback is shown in real-time:
   • Correct guesses: word turns green, enemy is attacked.
   • Close guesses: word highlighted in yellow.
   • Incorrect guesses: word marked in red.
5. Game ends when all words are solved or the enemy reaches the DEI.

⚠️ Limitations

This prototype focuses on demonstrating backend logic and interaction flow. Visual and animation aspects are minimal and do not reflect the final intended design for the FeedNPlay display.

🛠️ Setup & Run

1. Clone the repository.
2. Run the Spring Boot application.
3. Access /server for the display interface and /client for player interaction.
4. Connect multiple clients and test real-time collaboration.