Spooky Cake: a purple and orange Halloween cake by moonlight
Spooky Cake takes the birthday cake routine and moves it to Halloween night. The scene is a garden after dark: a full moon with a soft halo, a bare tree, a crooked fence, low fog drifting over the ground and glowing jack-o'-lanterns. Hills and a castle with lit windows sit in the distance, an orange and purple string of lights hangs behind, autumn leaves fall, and an owl hoots now and then over the wind and crickets. The cake is piped with purple and orange swirls and decorated with eyeballs and orange and green stars. It's cute rather than creepy: no graves, no skulls, just a playful fright.
Send it to friends who love Halloween, the group you're inviting to a costume party, or kids, since it gets more giggles than screams. It also works for someone whose birthday falls close to Halloween, as the cake has candles and number candles too; just mention the birthday in your message. You pick the cake's colour scheme, the candles and your note, then share the link.
What does the recipient experience?
- The first screen says 'I have a surprise for you tonight'. They open it with the pumpkin button and can choose to continue with or without the microphone.
- A box shakes and pops open, balloons float out and their name appears under 'Tonight is for you'.
- The Halloween cake lands in the moonlit garden and the candles light. They make a wish and tap 'I made my wish'.
- They blow at the phone, or hold the button, to put the candles out.
- In the celebration, bats burst from behind the cake, a friendly ghost pops up with its arms in the air and shouts 'Boo!', and a music-box tune plays alongside confetti and fireworks. Tapping the ghost gets a different reaction each time.
- The message card opens with 🎃, 👻, 🦇, 🍬 and ❤️ as thank-you emojis, and they can replay it if they like.
What can you choose?
A single colour choice sets both tiers and their dripping icing: purple (purple base, orange top), orange (orange base, purple top), black (black base, orange top) or lime (lime base, black top). Candles can be a number from 1 to 9, or number candles showing the age you type. Both names and your message appear on the card.
When to send it
Made for Halloween, 31 October, and the days leading up to it. Send it to friends before a costume party, to someone far away who loves the holiday, or to children. The on-screen text is all about Halloween, so if you're using it for a birthday, say so in your own message. No microphone is needed for the candles; holding the button works too.
Common questions
Are the ghost and bats scary?
Not really. The ghost is a round-eyed, rosy-cheeked sheet with tiny arms, and its 'Boo!' is meant to surprise, not frighten. There are no graves or skulls in the scene, so it's fine for kids.
What happens if you tap the ghost?
Once the ghost settles beside the cake, it can be tapped. Each tap gets a random reaction, most of them a 'Boo!', and a quick flurry of taps makes it lift off and spin around.
How is it different from the birthday cakes?
The steps are the same, but instead of the birthday song a Halloween music-box tune plays, a ghost and bats appear in the celebration, and the whole thing happens in a moonlit garden. The thank-you emojis are Halloween themed too.