Simple Hangman Game in JavaScript

This code implements a simple Hangman game in JavaScript. The game allows you to guess a word, and for each incorrect guess, a part of the hangman is drawn. You start with 10 lives, and the goal is to guess the word before running out of lives. The game randomly selects a word from one of the three categories: Premier League Football Teams, Films, or Cities. You can choose a letter from the alphabet displayed on the screen, and if the letter is part of the word, it will be revealed; otherwise, you lose a life and a part of the hangman is drawn.

Once you correctly guess all the letters in the word or run out of lives, the game ends, and you’ll be informed if you win or lose. Additionally, there’s a hint button that provides a clue related to the chosen word. The game is a fun way to test your vocabulary and guessing skills. Have fun playing Hangman!

How to Create Simple Hangman Game in JavaScript

1. Create the HTML structure for hangman game as follows:

<div class="wrapper">
   <h1>Hangman</h1>
    <h2>Vanilla JavaScript Hangman Game</h2>
    <p>Use the alphabet below to guess the word, or click hint to get a clue. </p>
</div>
<div class="wrapper">
    <div id="buttons">
    </div>  
    <p id="catagoryName"></p>
    <div id="hold">
    </div>
    <p id="mylives"></p>
    <p id="clue">Clue -</p>  
     <canvas id="stickman">This Text will show if the Browser does NOT support HTML5 Canvas tag</canvas>
    <div class="container">
      <button id="hint">Hint</button>
      <button id="reset">Play again</button>
    </div>
</div>

2. Style the game interface using the following CSS styles:

/* Variabes */
/* Mixin's */
body {
  background: #c1d72e;
  font-family: "HelveticaNeue-Light", "Helvetica Neue Light", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, "Lucida Grande", sans-serif;
  color: #fff;
  height: 100%;
  text-align: center;
  font-size: 18px;
}
.cd__main{
  background: #c1d72e !important;
}
.wrappper {
  width: 100%;
  margin: 0 auto;
}
.wrappper:after {
  content: "";
  display: table;
  clear: both;
}

canvas {
  color: #fff;
  border: #fff dashed 2px;
  padding: 15px;
}

h1, h2, h3 {
  font-family: "Roboto", sans-serif;
  font-weight: 100;
  text-transform: uppercase;
  margin: 5px 0;
}

h1 {
  font-size: 2.6em;
}

h2 {
  font-size: 1.6em;
}

p {
  font-size: 1.6em;
}

#alphabet {
  margin: 15px auto;
  padding: 0;
  max-width: 900px;
}
#alphabet:after {
  content: "";
  display: table;
  clear: both;
}

#alphabet li {
  float: left;
  margin: 0 10px 10px 0;
  list-style: none;
  width: 35px;
  height: 30px;
  padding-top: 10px;
  background: #fff;
  color: #c1d72e;
  cursor: pointer;
  -moz-border-radius: 5px;
  -webkit-border-radius: 5px;
  border-radius: 5px;
  -khtml-border-radius: 5px;
  border: solid 1px #fff;
}
#alphabet li:hover {
  background: #c1d72e;
  border: solid 1px #fff;
  color: #fff;
}

#my-word {
  margin: 0;
  display: block;
  padding: 0;
  display: block;
}

#my-word li {
  position: relative;
  list-style: none;
  margin: 0;
  display: inline-block;
  padding: 0 10px;
  font-size: 1.6em;
}

.active {
  opacity: 0.4;
  filter: alpha(opacity=40);
  -moz-transition: all 1s ease-in;
  -moz-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  -webkit-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  cursor: default;
}
.active:hover {
  -moz-transition: all 1s ease-in;
  -moz-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  -webkit-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  opacity: 0.4;
  filter: alpha(opacity=40);
  -moz-transition: all 1s ease-in;
  -moz-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  -webkit-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
}

#mylives {
  font-size: 1.6em;
  text-align: center;
  display: block;
}

button {
  -moz-border-radius: 5px;
  -webkit-border-radius: 5px;
  border-radius: 5px;
  -khtml-border-radius: 5px;
  background: #c1d72e;
  color: #fff;
  border: solid 1px #fff;
  text-decoration: none;
  cursor: pointer;
  font-size: 1.2em;
  padding: 18px 10px;
  width: 180px;
  margin: 10px;
  outline: none;
}
button:hover {
  -webkit-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  -moz-transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  transition: all 0.3s ease-in-out;
  background: #fff;
  border: solid 1px #fff;
  color: #c1d72e;
}

@media (max-width: 767px) {
  #alphabet {
    padding: 0 0 0 15px;
  }
}
@media (max-width: 480px) {
  #alphabet {
    padding: 0 0 0 25px;
  }
}

3. Finally, add the following JavaScript code to your web/app project to functionalize the hangman game.

window.onload = function () {

  var alphabet = ['a', 'b', 'c', 'd', 'e', 'f', 'g', 'h',
        'i', 'j', 'k', 'l', 'm', 'n', 'o', 'p', 'q', 'r', 's',
        't', 'u', 'v', 'w', 'x', 'y', 'z'];
  
  var categories;         // Array of topics
  var chosenCategory;     // Selected catagory
  var getHint ;          // Word getHint
  var word ;              // Selected word
  var guess ;             // Geuss
  var geusses = [ ];      // Stored geusses
  var lives ;             // Lives
  var counter ;           // Count correct geusses
  var space;              // Number of spaces in word '-'

  // Get elements
  var showLives = document.getElementById("mylives");
  var showCatagory = document.getElementById("scatagory");
  var getHint = document.getElementById("hint");
  var showClue = document.getElementById("clue");



  // create alphabet ul
  var buttons = function () {
    myButtons = document.getElementById('buttons');
    letters = document.createElement('ul');

    for (var i = 0; i < alphabet.length; i++) {
      letters.id = 'alphabet';
      list = document.createElement('li');
      list.id = 'letter';
      list.innerHTML = alphabet[i];
      check();
      myButtons.appendChild(letters);
      letters.appendChild(list);
    }
  }
    
  
  // Select Catagory
  var selectCat = function () {
    if (chosenCategory === categories[0]) {
      catagoryName.innerHTML = "The Chosen Category Is Premier League Football Teams";
    } else if (chosenCategory === categories[1]) {
      catagoryName.innerHTML = "The Chosen Category Is Films";
    } else if (chosenCategory === categories[2]) {
      catagoryName.innerHTML = "The Chosen Category Is Cities";
    }
  }

  // Create geusses ul
   result = function () {
    wordHolder = document.getElementById('hold');
    correct = document.createElement('ul');

    for (var i = 0; i < word.length; i++) {
      correct.setAttribute('id', 'my-word');
      guess = document.createElement('li');
      guess.setAttribute('class', 'guess');
      if (word[i] === "-") {
        guess.innerHTML = "-";
        space = 1;
      } else {
        guess.innerHTML = "_";
      }

      geusses.push(guess);
      wordHolder.appendChild(correct);
      correct.appendChild(guess);
    }
  }
  
  // Show lives
   comments = function () {
    showLives.innerHTML = "You have " + lives + " lives";
    if (lives < 1) {
      showLives.innerHTML = "Game Over";
    }
    for (var i = 0; i < geusses.length; i++) {
      if (counter + space === geusses.length) {
        showLives.innerHTML = "You Win!";
      }
    }
  }

      // Animate man
  var animate = function () {
    var drawMe = lives ;
    drawArray[drawMe]();
  }

  
   // Hangman
  canvas =  function(){

    myStickman = document.getElementById("stickman");
    context = myStickman.getContext('2d');
    context.beginPath();
    context.strokeStyle = "#fff";
    context.lineWidth = 2;
  };
  
    head = function(){
      myStickman = document.getElementById("stickman");
      context = myStickman.getContext('2d');
      context.beginPath();
      context.arc(60, 25, 10, 0, Math.PI*2, true);
      context.stroke();
    }
    
  draw = function($pathFromx, $pathFromy, $pathTox, $pathToy) {
    
    context.moveTo($pathFromx, $pathFromy);
    context.lineTo($pathTox, $pathToy);
    context.stroke(); 
}

   frame1 = function() {
     draw (0, 150, 150, 150);
   };
   
   frame2 = function() {
     draw (10, 0, 10, 600);
   };
  
   frame3 = function() {
     draw (0, 5, 70, 5);
   };
  
   frame4 = function() {
     draw (60, 5, 60, 15);
   };
  
   torso = function() {
     draw (60, 36, 60, 70);
   };
  
   rightArm = function() {
     draw (60, 46, 100, 50);
   };
  
   leftArm = function() {
     draw (60, 46, 20, 50);
   };
  
   rightLeg = function() {
     draw (60, 70, 100, 100);
   };
  
   leftLeg = function() {
     draw (60, 70, 20, 100);
   };
  
  drawArray = [rightLeg, leftLeg, rightArm, leftArm,  torso,  head, frame4, frame3, frame2, frame1]; 


  // OnClick Function
   check = function () {
    list.onclick = function () {
      var geuss = (this.innerHTML);
      this.setAttribute("class", "active");
      this.onclick = null;
      for (var i = 0; i < word.length; i++) {
        if (word[i] === geuss) {
          geusses[i].innerHTML = geuss;
          counter += 1;
        } 
      }
      var j = (word.indexOf(geuss));
      if (j === -1) {
        lives -= 1;
        comments();
        animate();
      } else {
        comments();
      }
    }
  }
  
    
  // Play
  play = function () {
    categories = [
        ["everton", "liverpool", "swansea", "chelsea", "hull", "manchester-city", "newcastle-united"],
        ["alien", "dirty-harry", "gladiator", "finding-nemo", "jaws"],
        ["manchester", "milan", "madrid", "amsterdam", "prague"]
    ];

    chosenCategory = categories[Math.floor(Math.random() * categories.length)];
    word = chosenCategory[Math.floor(Math.random() * chosenCategory.length)];
    word = word.replace(/\s/g, "-");
    console.log(word);
    buttons();

    geusses = [ ];
    lives = 10;
    counter = 0;
    space = 0;
    result();
    comments();
    selectCat();
    canvas();
  }

  play();
  
  // Hint

    hint.onclick = function() {

      hints = [
        ["Based in Mersyside", "Based in Mersyside", "First Welsh team to reach the Premier Leauge", "Owned by A russian Billionaire", "Once managed by Phil Brown", "2013 FA Cup runners up", "Gazza's first club"],
        ["Science-Fiction horror film", "1971 American action film", "Historical drama", "Anamated Fish", "Giant great white shark"],
        ["Northern city in the UK", "Home of AC and Inter", "Spanish capital", "Netherlands capital", "Czech Republic capital"]
    ];

    var catagoryIndex = categories.indexOf(chosenCategory);
    var hintIndex = chosenCategory.indexOf(word);
    showClue.innerHTML = "Clue: - " +  hints [catagoryIndex][hintIndex];
  };

   // Reset

  document.getElementById('reset').onclick = function() {
    correct.parentNode.removeChild(correct);
    letters.parentNode.removeChild(letters);
    showClue.innerHTML = "";
    context.clearRect(0, 0, 400, 400);
    play();
  }
}

That’s it! hopefully, you have successfully created a simple Hangman Game using JavaScript. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to comment below.