Tired Of Wordle? The NYT Has A New Game In Beta

Quentyn Kennemer / SlashGear

By Quentyn Kennemer/April 11, 2023 12:41 pm EST

Simplistic brain trainers have proven resilient in an age filled with larger-than-life video games and virtual reality experiences that make you feel like you've portaled to new worlds. Building on the popularity of its daily crossword puzzles, The New York Times helped thrust these games into more hands by making them freely accessible on its website and smartphone apps.

Take "Wordle," for instance. This unassuming web-based word-guessing game took the world by storm in 2020. Its players are tasked with unscrambling words using a few hints and attempts. Sometimes, the solutions are easy. Other times, you may need to reference our daily "Wordle" spoilers to save your streak.

Inspired by its success, Forbes has recently launched a similar title called "Frase." Clearly, these games are here to stay.

Now, the New York Times is adding to its pile with a numerology-oriented game called "Digits." The game is in beta, so currently, there's no accompanying smartphone app. But you can try it right now by heading to the publication's website on any device you own.

Quentyn Kennemer / SlashGear

"Digits" differs slightly from "Wordle" because you're given the final answer upfront. Your task, then, is to plug a preset collection of numbers into an equation that'll result in the target number. You use any basic mathematic operations for your task — addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

You can only use any of the original numbers once, but you can use the new number you get in subsequent equations. The only rule is that the result can't be a fraction or a negative number.

Currently, "Digits" is also a bit more forgiving than "Wordle." You can attempt as many times as you'd like, and technically, you only need to get close to the number to consider it a success. The game scores you on a scale of stars from one to three. You get one star if your answer lands within 25 digits of the target number, two stars if you're within 10, and three stars if you can get the exact number.

There are five total puzzles you can solve per day (new ones are released daily at midnight), and you can achieve a total ranking that starts with Beginner (0 stars) through Genius (15) each day. Get going by clicking the link right here.

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5 games Wordle fans should check out now

chordbug (Lynn)/Hello Wordl

By Rob Rich/Feb. 1, 2022 6:10 pm EST

If you've been enjoying Wordle's brain-teasing word puzzles but have started considering alternatives for any particular reason, there are certainly many options out there — so many, in fact, it could be overwhelming. Having an idea of where to look may be useful, and so we've assembled a short list of Wordle-adjacent games you might want to check out.

These titles include everything from spatial organization to grid-filling games, plus there's a clone if that's what you really want. Several of the options on this list are available on more than one platform, including web browsers, Android and iOS devices, Steam, and game consoles.

Though these alternatives aren't all specifically word games, we did try to keep the spirit of Wordle's accessible-yet-challenging approach to puzzles in mind. As well, we did find a nearly direct copy of Wordle, one that brings some small additions to the formula.

Spry Fox

Triple Town's puzzles are far more focused on space and object placement, but no less taxing on your brain. Everything on the board – from rocks and trees to buildings and bushes – can be combined in connected groups of three or more to create one "upgraded" piece (three grass tiles become a bush, three bushes become a tree).

What's so insidious about Spry Fox's puzzle game is that the board can fill up pretty fast, leaving you with fewer good locations to place whatever the next piece is. The wandering bears don't help, either. The game may not use words, but it can be extremely difficult to put down all the same – even if (or when, really) you lose. But if you're prepared to take on the challenge, you can find Triple Town on iOS and Android for free, or on Steam for $9.99.

Barry Gilbert

You won't be guessing letters and words, but nonograms still require a fair bit of deductive logic. All you have to do is use the numbers provided in the various rows and columns to figure out which squares to fill in and which ones to leave blank – similar to something like sudoku, but more visual and a little less math-y.

Barry Gilbert's Nonograms Online gets a recommendation because it's a solid place to start for new nonogram players or a good way for more seasoned players to brush up on their techniques. There are no real penalties for being wrong, puzzles can be adjusted from 5x5 grids up to 25x25, and there are quite a few to cycle through.

Really, the only downside is that, unlike some other nonogram puzzles, you aren't left with a pixelated image when you're done. Nonogram-style puzzles are available in many varieties spread across just about every platform imaginable, but Nonograms Online is specifically available in your web browser.

Rocketship Park

Unlike Wordle, the goal in Rocketship Park's Word Forward is to use a grid of letters to spell a bunch of words rather than piece together a specific one. It's sort of like Boggle in a sense, except that successfully spelling a word makes the rest of the puzzle more difficult. Every time you complete a word your letters disappear, so you'll have to plan ahead in addition to all the spelling you'll already be doing.

This is made all the more difficult when you consider that every move you make is locked-in, so you can't go back and change your mind. At least that used to be the case, but a recent update did add an Undo feature. And while it's not a free download, Word Forward is available across multiple platforms including Android ($2.99), iOS ($3.99), Switch ($4.99), and Steam ($4.99).

Zach Gage

Zach Gage and Jack Schlesinger's SpellTower is another strategic word search, but now you're on the clock! Or more specifically, you have to spell words and clear letter tiles quickly enough to prevent everything from piling up and reaching the top of the screen. If even one letter touches the top, it's game over, so you'll have to keep your cool while also trying to spell under a time limit.

This game also adds a layer of complexity by having the tiles shift and settle every time space is cleared. This dynamic will change where different letters are in relation to one another as you play to open up new spelling opportunities — or close others off completely. If you aren't careful, you could end up making things harder for yourself. If you want to check out SpellTower, you can download it for free for iOS or Android, or get it through Apple Arcade.

chordbug (Lynn)

If anything other than Wordle won't do, there's always hello wordl, which is basically just Wordle. It's the same "six guesses to figure out a five-letter word via the process of elimination" approach you're likely already familiar with. Except it's also not, because along with the one-try daily word puzzle you can also just keep playing random ones to your heart's content.

In addition, the size of the word is adjustable using a slider at the top of the page that allows you to choose between 4-letter to 11-letter brain-teasers. Just like Wordle, you can play the game in your web browser or save the bookmark to your phone's home screen, effectively making it function like an app. The game is free to play, and the info page states it will remain that way forever.

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