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Mystery Function

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Mystery Function is a daily web puzzle game where players deduce an unknown algorithm by testing inputs and predicting outputs.

summary is enough The linked article is unavailable, but the comment thread features the creator discussing design trade-offs and mobile UI constraints.

The article could not be read automatically; this analysis is based on the title and discussion.

summary

Mystery Function is a new daily puzzle game inspired by Wordle where users reverse-engineer an unknown algorithm. Since the article text is unavailable, details emerge from comments where the creator explains opting for input-output testing over writing raw code to support mobile players. Commenters also share testing strategies and debate the usability of custom on-screen keyboards.

key points

  1. Players reverse-engineer hidden functions by providing inputs and predicting outputs rather than writing actual code.
  2. The creator chose input-output matching instead of Python execution to ensure the game works well on mobile devices.
  3. Community members discuss input strategies like using diverse character strings to uncover permutations.

who should read it

Puzzle enthusiasts and web developers interested in casual game mechanics.

discussion positive

consensus

Commenters find the game engaging and fun, comparing it to Wordle while sharing various strategies for testing input permutations.

pushback

A user criticizes the custom HTML keyboard implementation and mobile scrolling behavior.

best comment by Nfsaavedra ↗

That was the initial idea, actually! But after some thought, we realized that it probably wouldn't work well on mobile and would also be hard for people who just want to do a quick puzzle. So we came up with the idea that it's enough for the person to know the algorithm, and we can check it by asking them for the result of two inputs.

Initially, we also had three inputs, but realized it was too boring, while a single input allowed an incorrect algorithm to be right too often!

Would you be interested in having to write the Python function? It could be an optional feature in the game.

The creator details why they abandoned writing Python in favor of input-output checks to accommodate mobile layouts.

Generated by an LLM from the article and thread. Check the sources before relying on it.