About the project
ScubaWord is an iOS-first word-search diving game. Players drag horizontally, vertically or diagonally to find target words, remove letter tiles and reveal the next underwater grid beneath them.
The playable SwiftUI and SpriteKit campaign combines deterministic puzzle generation with tactile selection, animated level transitions, score feedback, accessible motion alternatives and an asset-backed treasure sequence.
Developed in partnership with Codex
Codex has supported the project from requirements and architecture through implementation, gameplay tuning, test coverage, visual development and delivery records. The linked summaries below document that work as a sequence of reviewable product decisions rather than presenting AI involvement as a single undifferentiated claim.
- PlatformNative iPhone app
- TechnologySwift, SwiftUI, SpriteKit and XCTest
- CampaignTen procedurally arranged levels
- WorkflowProduct-led, Codex-assisted engineering
Development records
Codex session summaries
Each record captures a stage of the project: the request, the decisions made, improvements delivered, verification performed and any work still open.
· Session progress record
Responsive level preparation and 100-word replay variety
This interval removed a serious launch-time stall and completed the next step in replay variety. Grid generation now prepares only the current and immediately needed layers without blocking the interface, while each prototype vocabulary profile has grown to 100 curated words so a normal ten-level dive can use 75 distinct targets and an immediate replay can deliberately surface all 25 previously unused words.
Read the session summary· Session progress record
Progression, performance and replay variety became a complete game loop
This interval moved beyond the first playable journey into a persistent progression system with multiple modes, rewards, cosmetics and researched dive content. Device feedback then sharpened regional-map presentation, Hard-mode layout and animation performance, before a replay-aware word-pool prototype made repeat campaigns more varied without ever risking a missing grid.
Read the session summary· Session progress record
A true textured globe with surface-attached reef markers
This interval corrected the globe’s interaction model and then refined every layer that made it feel artificial. The approved illustration now wraps a continuously rotatable sphere, swipes carry natural momentum, and reef markers have moved from hovering screen overlays into the globe material itself.
Read the session summary· Session progress record
From a centred word grid to an illustrated world-selection journey
This interval refined the core play layout and then built a complete route from the home screen to selectable reef locations. Prompt feedback progressively raised the bar from functional navigation, to recognisable geography, to direct use of the approved illustrated artwork when procedural maps still felt visually out of place.
Read the session summary· Three-session combined progress record
From world structure to a playable, polished home experience
Reef destinations, an accessible collectible-chest sequence and the development of the game’s initial home experience into a verified visual baseline.
Read the session summary· Combined progress record
From prototype friction to an asset-ready treasure loop
Gameplay composition, score-flight tuning, rapid finale testing and the move from placeholder shapes to catalog-backed collectible rewards.
Read the session summary