Where thousands of players can all play the same game realtime while a timer counts down. The timer should be the same for all players and when the timer runs out the score of all players are compared and ordered decending from the highest score.
Whats the best way to do this?
If you don’t know how to create client/server architecture I would recommend just using something like Game Center or Google Game Services they have stuff that could achieve this, anyway you go it will need some creative programming on your side.
I do not know client/server architecture but i am willing to learn. How and where should i start learning?
I could use GGS but i have no idea how to implement that code in to my corona project. The code is obviously not lua. How can i do it?
Your in luck, Corona has a ton of plugins (and built in objects) that can handle the implementation of the java/ios code for you click on the link below to get started on how to intergrate ggs 
http://coronalabs.com/blog/2013/06/25/tutorial-introducing-google-play-game-services/
Building client/server multiplayer servers requires a lot more knowledge than you could learn when making your game and unless you have extensive knowledge of sockets “and c++ for a backend server” I wouldn’t recommend you go that route it isn’t for the faint of heart.
It seems to support only leaderboards and achievements. I need more functionality.
I understand that its going to be hard to learn the backend stuff, but i have to start somewhere right? How should i start learning it?
A good starting point would be to actually do research 
Here is a link to the Corona Documentation: http://docs.coronalabs.com/daily/api/library/gameNetwork/request.html
Here is a link to Google Documentation: https://developers.google.com/games/services/android/realtimeMultiplayer
I think overtorment created a multiplayer network using node.js http://forums.coronalabs.com/topic/32775-noobhub-free-opensource-multiplayer-and-network-messaging-for-coronasdk/
There is no one solution that someone could recommend, I have been building client/server communications for the better part of 16 years even across modems and can’t even begin to tell you how fast and how much changes on a day to day basis and how one approach works in project A but has to be rewritten in project B.
If you don’t know how to create client/server architecture I would recommend just using something like Game Center or Google Game Services they have stuff that could achieve this, anyway you go it will need some creative programming on your side.
I do not know client/server architecture but i am willing to learn. How and where should i start learning?
I could use GGS but i have no idea how to implement that code in to my corona project. The code is obviously not lua. How can i do it?
Your in luck, Corona has a ton of plugins (and built in objects) that can handle the implementation of the java/ios code for you click on the link below to get started on how to intergrate ggs
http://coronalabs.com/blog/2013/06/25/tutorial-introducing-google-play-game-services/
Building client/server multiplayer servers requires a lot more knowledge than you could learn when making your game and unless you have extensive knowledge of sockets “and c++ for a backend server” I wouldn’t recommend you go that route it isn’t for the faint of heart.
It seems to support only leaderboards and achievements. I need more functionality.
I understand that its going to be hard to learn the backend stuff, but i have to start somewhere right? How should i start learning it?
A good starting point would be to actually do research
Here is a link to the Corona Documentation: http://docs.coronalabs.com/daily/api/library/gameNetwork/request.html
Here is a link to Google Documentation: https://developers.google.com/games/services/android/realtimeMultiplayer
I think overtorment created a multiplayer network using node.js http://forums.coronalabs.com/topic/32775-noobhub-free-opensource-multiplayer-and-network-messaging-for-coronasdk/
There is no one solution that someone could recommend, I have been building client/server communications for the better part of 16 years even across modems and can’t even begin to tell you how fast and how much changes on a day to day basis and how one approach works in project A but has to be rewritten in project B.