Python Wordle Game - Terminal Edition

A terminal-based implementation of Wordle using Python and ncurses.

Requirements

• Python 3.6+
• ncurses library

Files

• pyrdle.py - Main game implementation
• pyrdle_words_[level].txt - Tiered dictionaries of valid 5-letter words

How to Run

$ poetry run python pyrdle.py --help
usage: pyrdle.py [-h] [--easy | --medium | --hard] [--common | --literary | --techy | --cultural | --full ]
                 [--wordlist FILE]

pyrdle Game - Guess the 5-letter word!

options:
  -h, --help       show this help message and exit
  --easy           Easy mode: common words only
  --medium         Medium mode: standard vocabulary
  --hard           Hard mode: includes obscure words
  --common         Common everyday words
  --literary       Literary and archaic terms
  --techy          Technical and scientific terms
  --cultural       Cultural and international terms
  --full           Full dictionary (all words)
  --wordlist FILE  Use custom word list file

Difficulty Levels:
  --easy       Common everyday words (default)
  --medium     Standard vocabulary including less common words
  --hard       Challenging words including archaic and technical terms

Word Categories:
  --common     Common English words (default)
  --literary   Literary and archaic terms
  --techy      Technical and scientific terms
  --cultural   Words from various cultures and languages
  --full       Complete dictionary with all words

Examples:
  python3 pyrdle.py --easy
  python3 pyrdle.py --techy
  python3 pyrdle.py --hard --literary

How to Play

1. The goal is to guess the secret 5-letter word within 6 attempts
2. Type your guess using the keyboard (A-Z letters)
3. Press Enter to submit your guess
4. After each guess, the color of the letters will change:
   • Green: Letter is in the word and in the correct position
   • Yellow: Letter is in the word but in the wrong position
   • Red: Letter is NOT in the word (confirmed absent)
   • Gray/Dim: Letter has not been used yet (shown on keyboard)

The keyboard at the bottom shows all letters with their current status, making it easy to track which letters are still available for guessing.

Controls

• A-Z: Type letters for your guess
• Enter: Submit your current guess
• Backspace: Delete the last letter
• N: Start a new game (when game is over)
• Q or ESC: Quit the game
• Ctrl+C: Force quit

Adding More Words

To expand the word list, simply add more 5-letter words (one per line) to the appropriate file in the wordlists directory. The game automatically filters for 5-letter words and converts them to uppercase.

Troubleshooting

If colors don't display correctly:

• Ensure your terminal supports colors
• Try running with: TERM=xterm-256color python3 wordle.py

If the game doesn't fit your terminal:

• Resize your terminal window to at least 80x24 characters
• The game adapts to different terminal sizes but needs minimum space