Spanwright

Engineer a truss within a tight budget, read the forces flowing through each member, then call your weakest link before the load comes down.

How to play

Each round is a build-predict-test loop. You spend a budget upgrading members from cheap to strong, study a live free-body view, name the member you think fails first, and then run the load test to see if your bridge holds.

• Build: click members to cycle each one's capacity, spending against your budget.
• Read the free-body colours — red marks compression, blue marks tension, with intensity by stress.
• Predict: click the member you believe will fail first.
• Test: the load runs and you're graded on whether the span holds and whether your prediction was right.

Controls

• Desktop: click members to upgrade them, click your predicted weak member, then run the test; pick Short/Medium/Long and Daily/Practice.
• Phone & tablet: tap members and buttons — fully touch-friendly.

Tips & strategy

• The deepest-stressed member shows the strongest colour — that's your prime suspect for first failure.
• Don't gold-plate: strengthening members that carry little force just wastes budget.
• Triangulated load paths spread force; a long unbraced span concentrates it and fails early.

What you'll learn

Spanwright models a real truss with axial tension and compression, then asks you to build it and predict its failure.

• Skills: structural engineering, trusses, tension and compression, statics
• Best for: advanced high school / college
• For parents & teachers: real truss statics.

About Spanwright

Spanwright models a real truss with axial tension and compression, then asks you to both build it and forecast its failure. It's an original, free browser game with three span sizes and daily plus practice modes.

A free, original browser game on PlayPendium — no download, no install. Browse all games →