Show DEV: I built a daily web puzzle out of 1-star travel reviews

Isaac Andres — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 00:18:50 +0000

I built PunFiction: 1-Star Travel Reviews, a free daily web puzzle where you guess world landmarks by deciphering unhinged travel reviews from confused travelers.

Tech Stack: Vanilla JS, CSS, HTML, GitHub Pages, MongoDB Atlas

The Concept
The internet can feel like it's literally overflowing with consumer complaints. I decided to take that negative energy and turn it into a 2-minute daily browser game for your morning coffee break.

The Game Loop:
Read an absurd 1-star review of a famous world landmark.

Decipher the rhyming pun clues to guess the destination.

Solving the puzzle unlocks an illustrated cartoon postcard and a sassy reply from the landmark 'manager'.

The Tech Stack
I wanted PunFiction to feel lightweight and lightning fast.

Vanilla JavaScript: No React, Vue, or Svelte. Pure DOM manipulation and client-side logic.

Zero Dependencies: No npm install spiral, no build-step headaches, and zero third-party scripts.

No Accounts: Daily state, win streaks, and game progress live in localStorage.

MongoDB Atlas: Light backend for aggregate puzzle stats (success rates, guess counts, no PII stored).

Hosted on GitHub Pages: Static asset delivery via CDN.

Give It a Spin
If you like wordplay, geography, or just laughing at terrible tourist complaints, give today's daily puzzle a shot:

👉 Play PunFiction: 1-Star Travel Reviews

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the UX, the game feel, or your take on building lightweight web games. Drop your feedback (or your worst pun) in the comments!

DEV Community: Isaac Andres

Show DEV: I built a daily web puzzle out of 1-star travel reviews