Word games have become a bit of a phenomenon in recent years, with Wordle still dominating rankings and social media — particularly when the answer is a tricky one.
One rarely explored ability of an AI chatbot is in creating and even playing word games. We’ve had gaming where we play against artificial intelligence for years — but what if the AI makes the game? I’ve created a series of prompts that will push Google Gemini to do just that.
Unlike previous editions of Prompt_Jitsu, all of these prompts here are designed to be the start of a conversation with the chatbot. It will begin a game and make the AI a player and game master.
While each prompt will give you a specific game, they can all be adjusted and tweaked to be used in a different way or to create an entirely new game. They will also work on a range of AI models and not just Google Gemini, but I’ve only tested them with Gemini.
Creating word games with AI
As you work through these prompts you’ll want to start a new chat for each one. That way you can go back to it anytime for a new game or to continue where you left off last time.
These games will all work with the free version of Google Gemini. However, if you try this out with Gemini Advanced you’ll get a more complex and challenging game.
1. Categories Game
(Image credit: Google)
This is a fun one to start with. It puts the AI in the role of quizmaster, offering up a category such as fruits and you have to come up with as many fruits as you can. It gives you points based on originality, uniqueness and how close you got to the category.
The prompt: “Let’s play Categories Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and choose a category. My task will be to name a unique item within that category. For each item I name, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the category (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to name items and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first category.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Categories Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and choose a category. My task will be to name a unique item within that category. For each item I name, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the category (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to name items and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first category.
2. Last Letter, First Letter
(Image credit: Google)
This is a really fun game to try. Gemini will give you a word and you have to respond with a word that starts with the last letter of the word you were given. It scores on originality and how well you follow the previous word. Sometimes it struggles, especially the free version so just remind it that it made a mistake and it’ll recover and continue the game.
The prompt: “Let’s play Last Letter Chain! You’ll be the quizmaster and say a word. My task will be to come up with a word that starts with the last letter of the given word. For each word I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the last letter rule (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to create a chain of words and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Last Letter Chain! You’ll be the quizmaster and say a word. My task will be to come up with a word that starts with the last letter of the given word. For each word I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the last letter rule (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to create a chain of words and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.
3. Rhyme Time
(Image credit: Google)
This one is all about getting the rhyme right, the complexity factor in scoring adds a fun challenge as it might give you a single syllable word like dog and to get full marks you need to find a multi-syllable rhyming word such travalog.
The prompt: “Let’s play Rhyme Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a word. My task will be to come up with a unique rhyme for that word. For each rhyme I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), perfect rhyme (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to provide rhymes and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first word to rhyme with.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Rhyme Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a word. My task will be to come up with a unique rhyme for that word. For each rhyme I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), perfect rhyme (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to provide rhymes and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first word to rhyme with.
4. Alphabet Sequence
(Image credit: Google)
Next up we’re playing with the alphabet. You need to create a word for every letter of the alphabet which seems simple — but for full marks you need some creative words.
The prompt: “Let’s play Alphabet Sequence! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a sequence of words, each starting with the next letter of the alphabet. For each word I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the alphabetical order (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 words to complete the sequence and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Alphabet Sequence! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a sequence of words, each starting with the next letter of the alphabet. For each word I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), adherence to the alphabetical order (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 words to complete the sequence and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.
5. Compound Chaos
(Image credit: Google)
Creating compound words is fun and something the German language thrives on, but this is an English prompt so may be a little harder. Here you’ll get points for complexity and Gemini has been instructed to be particularly tough on the judgement.
The prompt: “Let’s play Compound Builder! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a series of compound words by adding one word at a time. For each compound word I create, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), valid compound formation (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 5 attempts to build compound words and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first word.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Compound Builder! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a series of compound words by adding one word at a time. For each compound word I create, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), valid compound formation (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 5 attempts to build compound words and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll give me the first word.
6. Synonym Strings
(Image credit: Google)
We all love a good synonym, or is that just me? If it is just me then you try writing a few thousand words a day and keep it interesting. Here Gemini will mark you on originality and you’ve got six words to find for each challenge.
The prompt: “Let’s play Synonym Sequence! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a sequence of synonyms, each related to the previous word. For each synonym I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), accuracy as a synonym (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to create the sequence and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Synonym Sequence! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me a starting word. My task will be to create a sequence of synonyms, each related to the previous word. For each synonym I provide, you’ll analyze it and award points based on its originality (1-3 points), accuracy as a synonym (1-3 points), and complexity (1-3 points). I’ll have 6 attempts to create the sequence and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll type “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word.
7. Word Ladders
(Image credit: Google)
Finally, word ladders. In this challenge you’ll get two related words and you’ve got to transform the first word into the second word by changing one letter at a time. You have to be original and do it within five steps for each word.
The prompt: “Let’s play Word Ladders Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me two related words. My task is to transform the first word into the second word by changing only one letter at a time, creating valid words along the way. For each valid word in my sequence, you’ll award points for originality (1-3), adherence to the rules (1-3), and complexity (1-3). You’ll also compare my solution to the optimal one and award efficiency points (1-3). I’ll have 5 attempts to solve each word ladder and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll say “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word pair. After my answer, you’ll share the optimal solution, award points, and give me the next word ladder. Let’s see how well I can navigate these challenges!”
You can also jump straight in to start this game with Gemini chat.
Let’s play Word Ladders Challenge! You’ll be the quizmaster and give me two related words. My task is to transform the first word into the second word by changing only one letter at a time, creating valid words along the way. For each valid word in my sequence, you’ll award points for originality (1-3), adherence to the rules (1-3), and complexity (1-3). You’ll also compare my solution to the optimal one and award efficiency points (1-3). I’ll have 5 attempts to solve each word ladder and score as high as possible. When I’m ready, I’ll say “Start,” and you’ll provide the first word pair. After my answer, you’ll share the optimal solution, award points, and give me the next word ladder. Let’s see how well I can navigate these challenges!
More from Tom’s Guide
If you enjoyed these prompts I’d love to see how you made use of them. Feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email. You can also check out other Prompt_Jitsu guides including ideas for getting the most out of Google Gemini, making mythical images in Adobe Firefly and creating mobile wallpaper in Midjourney.
