Wordle’s creator is back with a new game, and it’s a real chin scratcher


Josh Wardle had a hell of a tough act to follow. His last game, Wordle, became incredibly popular thanks to its blend of simplicity, clarity and shareability. Over four years (and a seven-figure sale of Wordle to The New York Times) later, Wardle has released his follow-up game.

Like Wordle and its myriad clones, Parseword offers up one puzzle per day. It taps into the mechanics of cryptic crossword clues. So it might ask you to replace one of the words with a synonym, reverse it or find a homophone. You may need to remove letters from a word or combine it with another one to find the answer. There’s a tutorial to help you get to grips with things and hints are available.

Wardle told The New Yorker he was inspired by The Last of Us showrunner Craig Mazin, who he heard discuss the logic behind cryptics on a podcast. Wardle brought in two friends, Chris Dary and Matt Lee, whom he worked with at Reddit to collaborate on the new game. They received permission to use clues from long-time cryptic constructors Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon.

After playing the tutorial and today’s puzzle, it seems you may need to be wired in a certain way to play Parseword. It’s certainly less approachable than Wordle. At first glance, it’s hard to see this reaching the same kind of mass appeal as Wardle’s previous game. (Fittingly enough, Parseword feels like a game geared toward New Yorker readers.)

Of course, countless other casual daily games that aim to replicate the success of Wordle have popped up over the last few years, from Quordle, Bracket City and Framed to the Times’ own Connections, Strands and Pips. Catfishing, which asks you to guess Wikipedia article subjects based on their categories, is a new favorite of mine. I still miss the original Heardle, though.



Source link

  • Related Posts

    I’ve tested the latest Switch 2 controllers, and this one is the best

    If you choose to get an extra controller for your Nintendo Switch 2, you can spend a lot — and get a lot in return. Buying Nintendo’s own $89 Switch…

    Anthropic sues US over blacklisting; White House calls firm “radical left, woke”

    Google and OpenAI staff support lawsuit Another brief supporting Anthropic was filed by various technical, engineering, and research employees of Google and OpenAI. Google is an investor in Anthropic. The…

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    You Missed

    States urged to settle Live Nation claims after US strikes deal

    States urged to settle Live Nation claims after US strikes deal

    I’ve tested the latest Switch 2 controllers, and this one is the best

    I’ve tested the latest Switch 2 controllers, and this one is the best

    Bam Adebayo scored 83 points, and it doesn’t matter how he got there

    Bam Adebayo scored 83 points, and it doesn’t matter how he got there

    Inditex Q4 Sales Slow Amid Currency Headwinds, Full-Year Results Solid

    Inditex Q4 Sales Slow Amid Currency Headwinds, Full-Year Results Solid

    Reaching net zero by 2050 ‘cheaper for UK than one fossil fuel crisis’ | Climate crisis

    Reaching net zero by 2050 ‘cheaper for UK than one fossil fuel crisis’ | Climate crisis

    MPs to vote on whether to study bill seeking to close U.S. loophole for arms exports

    MPs to vote on whether to study bill seeking to close U.S. loophole for arms exports