Help & User Guide

Welcome to Quiz Goblin

Quiz Goblin lets you import your Google Slides or PowerPoint to create interactive slides. A presenter runs the game from one screen while players join on their own phones or devices using a 4-letter game code, and you can layer live questions, polls, word clouds, and hotseat rounds on top of your presentation — including questions generated on the fly using AI.

How It Works

Quiz Goblin works like a live game show. There are two roles — the Presenter who controls the game, and the Players who join on their phones.

🖥️

Presenter Screen

Opens index.php on a large screen or projector. Controls all game flow — starting questions, showing results, and advancing slides.

📱

Player Devices

Players open player.php on their own phone or tablet and enter the 4-letter game code shown on the presenter's screen.

🎯

Real-Time

Answers, scores, and reactions all update live for everyone in the room. No app download needed — everything runs in the browser.

🤖

AI-Powered

The presenter can generate quiz questions automatically from the current slide content using built-in AI (requires your own Anthropic API key, entered per game).

Presenter Guide

The presenter opens index.php on the main display. This is the control centre for the entire game.

Starting a Game

  1. Open index.php in your browser — ideally full-screen on a projector or large monitor.
  2. A 4-letter game code is shown in the top bar — share this with your players so they can join at player.php.
  3. Watch the player count — it updates automatically as players join. Wait until everyone is in before starting.
  4. Load your content — either paste a Google Slides share URL into the URL bar, or click the green PPTX button to load a PowerPoint file.
  5. Navigate your slides — use the on-screen navigation buttons to move through your presentation.
  6. Launch questions — use the panel on the right to start a quiz question, poll, word cloud, or hotseat round at any time.

Top Bar Controls

ControlWhat it does
Game Code BadgeDisplays the 4-letter code players use to join. Click "New Game" next to it to start a fresh session.
URL InputPaste a Google Slides share URL to display your deck as slides.
LoadLoads the URL you typed into the slide viewer.
PPTXUpload a PowerPoint file (.pptx) — it gets converted and displayed slide by slide.
AI-APIOpens the AI key panel where you paste your Anthropic API key to enable AI features.
Player CountShows how many players are currently connected.
💡 Tip: The game code stays the same until you click "New Game". You can reload the presenter page without losing your players.

Player Guide

Players open player.php on their phone, tablet, or laptop. No app download is required.

  1. Go to the game URL — your presenter will tell you the web address (e.g. yoursite.com/play/player.php). You can also scan the QR code shown on the presenter's screen.
  2. Enter the 4-letter game code — this is displayed on the presenter's screen. Type it in and tap Join.
  3. Choose a name and colour — pick a display name and a colour. You can optionally enter your real name.
  4. Wait in the lobby — you'll see a waiting screen until the presenter launches a question.
  5. Answer questions — when a question appears, tap your answer before the timer runs out. Faster correct answers score more points.
  6. Watch the results — after each question, the correct answer and a leaderboard are shown.
✅ Note: Players can rejoin the game if they accidentally close their browser — just re-enter the same game code and name.

Game Modes

The presenter can switch between different interactive modes at any point during the game.

Quiz Question

A multiple-choice question with 5 options (A–E) and a countdown timer. Points are awarded for correct answers, with a speed bonus for fast responses.

📊

Poll

Players vote on a question with no right or wrong answer. Results are shown as a live bar chart. Polls do not affect scores.

☁️

Word Cloud

Players type in a free-text word or short phrase. All submissions are gathered and displayed as a word cloud on the presenter's screen.

🔥

Hotseat

One player is put in the hotseat. The rest of the audience votes thumbs up or thumbs down in real time. Great for discussion or debate moments.

Reactions

During any round, players can send emoji reactions (🎉 😂 😮 👏) that float up on the presenter's screen. This adds energy to the room without interrupting the game.

Loading a PowerPoint

You can upload a .pptx file directly from your computer to use as your slide deck.

  1. Click the green "PPTX" button in the top bar of the presenter view.
  2. Select your .pptx file — maximum file size is 50 MB.
  3. Wait for upload — the file is sent to the server and the slide count is detected automatically.
  4. Slides appear in the viewer — use the left/right navigation arrows to move between slides.
💡 Storage note: Uploaded PowerPoint files are automatically deleted from the server after 6 hours to save space. Re-upload if you need to use the same file again in a later session.

Multiple Presenters

If two presenters are running sessions at the same time, each gets their own unique game code and their own uploaded file. They do not interfere with each other — each player is connected to exactly one game code.

AI Question Generation

Quiz Goblin can automatically generate a quiz question or poll options based on the content of the current slide. This uses the Anthropic Claude API and reads your slide using your browser's screen-share feature.

How to use it

  1. Add your API key — click the AI-API button in the top bar and paste your Anthropic API key.
  2. Navigate to a slide with content you want to quiz on.
  3. Click "AI-this" in the control panel — your browser will ask permission to share the current tab so Claude can read the slide.
  4. Wait a moment — the AI reads the slide and creates a 5-option multiple-choice question.
  5. Review the question — you can accept it, edit the topic, or generate a new one.
  6. Launch it — players will see the question on their devices immediately.
🔑 Setup required: AI features require a valid Anthropic API key, which you enter through the AI-API button. Without a key, the AI buttons will prompt you to add one.
🔒 API key disclaimer: Your Anthropic API key is stored on the server only for the duration of your game and is tied to your 4-letter game code. It is automatically deleted after 3 hours, when you press Reset, or when you start a New Game — whichever comes first. You can also remove it manually at any time using the Remove saved key option in the AI-API panel. Keys are never shared between games and are never shown to players. Because the key is used to make billed calls to Anthropic on your behalf, treat it like a password and only use a key you control.

Generated questions have exactly 5 answer options (A through E), one clearly correct answer, and are kept concise so they're easy to read on a phone screen.

Scores & Leaderboard

Scores are tracked automatically throughout the game and visible to the presenter at any time.

How scoring works

ActionPoints
Correct answer (slow)Base points awarded
Correct answer (fast)Bonus for speed — the faster, the more
Wrong answerNo points
Poll / Word Cloud / HotseatNo points — participation only

Viewing the leaderboard

The presenter can open the Scores panel at any time to see a full live leaderboard. Players also see their own rank on their device after each question.

Resetting the game

The presenter can click Reset Game to wipe all players, scores, and answers and start fresh. This is useful between groups or class periods. The same game code can be reused. Resetting also removes any saved AI API key.

⚠️ Warning: Resetting the game cannot be undone. All scores and player data will be permanently cleared.

Podium & End of Game

At the end of the game, the presenter can reveal the final podium — a dramatic animated reveal of the top 3 players.

  1. Open the Podium panel from the presenter controls.
  2. The reveal happens in stages — 3rd place is shown first, then 2nd, then 1st, each with a short delay for dramatic effect.
  3. Players see the podium too — it displays on their devices at the same time.

After the podium, you can reset the game to run another round with the same or different players.

Tips & FAQ

Can players join mid-game?

Yes. Players can join at any point. They will start with zero score but can participate in all future questions from the moment they join.

What happens if a player's phone screen locks?

They can simply reopen the browser and re-enter the game code and name. Their score is preserved on the server.

Can I use Quiz Goblin without a PowerPoint?

Yes. You can paste a Google Slides URL into the slide viewer, or just skip slides entirely and use the question and poll tools on their own. The game works fine without any uploaded content.

How many players can join?

There is no hard-coded player limit. In practice, performance depends on your server. For classroom use (up to ~40 players) it should run smoothly.

Is the game code shared between sessions?

No. Each game code has its own isolated database. Two sessions running simultaneously with different codes are completely independent.

How do I start a brand new game with fresh players?

Click the Reset Game button, or click New Game in the game code badge area to generate a new code. Players will need to re-join with the new code.

Do uploaded PowerPoints stay on the server?

Uploaded .pptx files are stored temporarily and automatically deleted after 6 hours. They are not shared between games and are not accessible to players.

Is my AI API key safe?

Your key is stored server-side only for your current game, tied to your game code, and is automatically removed after 3 hours or when you reset or start a new game. It is never shown to players or shared between games. See the disclaimer in the AI Question Generation section for full details.

💡 Pro tip: For the best experience, display the presenter screen (index.php) on a projector or large TV, and have players use their own phones. The QR code on the presenter screen makes it easy for players to get to the right URL quickly.