The Unexpected Rise of SyncDrawGuess: A Skribbl Clone I Barely Finished

The Unremarkable Beginning

When I started working on my Skribbl.io clone, SyncDrawGuess, I didn't think much of it. It was just another project to fill my portfolio, a quick challenge that took me about a week to complete. Another week went into polishing it up. I even added placeholders for fancy features like custom words, hints, and mid-game joining—which, of course, I never actually implemented because, well, priorities.

After wrapping it up, I wrote an article about it and casually tossed it onto Medium as I write on 3 platforms, without expecting much. I also posted a quick project showcase video on YouTube (yes, I sometimes post there—surprise). And then, I moved on with life, neglecting Medium like an abandoned side quest in an open-world RPG.

The "Wait, What?" Moment

One fine day,, I got an email from medium so I decided to check my Medium stats (which I rarely do). To my utter shock, one article had 84+ reads I visited the analytics page to see which article it was I found out the one I wrote for this project was most read. I thought, That’s odd.

Then I checked my YouTube video stats, and guess what? 300+ views, with actual comments from people thanking me because my project apparently saved their college assignments.

Hold on. Me? A 12th grader? Helping people pass their college projects? What kind of reverse mentoring is this?

The Projects I Thought Would Gain Traction (But Didn't)

I've worked on numerous projects, including:

• FinFlow – A financial management web app.
• Various e-commerce platforms – Because everyone wants to sell something online.
• A Zomato-like food delivery app – Because food is essential, and so is convenience.

All of these had far more effort put into them. They were polished, functional, and well-thought-out. Yet, for some reason, SyncDrawGuess—a project I halfheartedly completed and didn’t even finish implementing all the features for—was the one that gained unexpected traction.

Why Did This Project Succeed?

I have zero clue. Maybe it was the right project at the right time. Maybe it filled a niche I wasn’t even aware of. Maybe the internet just decided to play a joke on me.

Regardless, it’s a lesson that sometimes, the things we don’t think much of end up being the ones that take off.

Lessons Learned

• Effort ≠ Success – Just because you put in the work doesn’t mean it’ll get noticed you have to put efforts into making it noticible.
• Neglected platforms might surprise you – I hadn’t checked Medium in ages, and yet, here we are.

* You never know who needs your work – Apparently, some college students out there were desperately looking for a Skribbl clone.

Conclusion

Sometimes, the things you least expect to succeed end up surprising you. Maybe it was the right project at the right time, maybe it hit some niche demand, or maybe the universe just decided to flex its sense of humor on me. Either way, I’ll take it.

Also, my apologies for disappearing for almost three weeks without posting an article. Exams happened, and I had to focus on those (because apparently, education is important). But now, I’m back, and I plan to be regular with one article per week. Let’s see how long I can keep up this streak!

Now, excuse me while I try to figure out why my more "serious" projects didn’t get the same love.