Wordle takes internet by storm

“Did you get today’s Wordle?” A recent question people around the world are asking their friends and coworkers. Wordle is a web based word game where you get six chances to guess the five letter word of the day. You guess a word and the letters will appear yellow, green, or gray: yellow meaning that letter is in the word but in the wrong spot, green means that the letter is in the word and in the right position, and gray means the letter is not in the word. 

The game was created by software engineer Josh Wardle who independently released it to the public in October 2021. Wardle created the game for his partner, Palak Shah, who loves word games. “It’s really sweet,” Palak told New York Times, “this is definitely how Josh shows his love.” 

Since it was released in October, Wordle has become a viral hit. Gillian Siccardi, Westwood High School Senior, explains, “I started playing about a month ago. I saw it on TikTok and decided to try it. I’ve been hooked ever since.” New York time reports: “90 people played the game on November 1. Nearly two months later, 300,000 people played it. Now, the puzzle has millions of daily players.” Users also like to connect with people over the game: “I like something that everybody is involved with and this is something that so many people are doing. The world is so messed up but we have a word game that’s challenging our brains, and it’s so nice that we are all in on something that is just so pure,” Eileen Nagle, Westwood High School English Teacher, says. 

Tyler Perrino, Westwood High School Junior, reports, “It’s a great source of knowledge and finding new vocabulary.” Wordle is a great way to challenge yourself and learn new things. 

Siccardi says, “I have learned many new words that I now try to use in my daily life.” By simply taking 5-20 minutes out of your day, you develop problem solving skills in a fun way. 

“I tend to start with words with a lot of vowels. I don’t start with the same word every day,” Perrino says. Learning how to create strategies is an important life skill Perrino will use for many years to come. 

On January 31, New York Times bought Wardle’s game for $1 million. The game has remained free to play and easy to access. However, many users are not happy about this switch. 

Siccardi says, “I don’t like the switch. Before the words were actual words that everyone knew. Now, the words have double letters and are overall harder to guess.” 

Nagle agrees, “they upped the complexity and there are definitely harder terms.” Regardless of the ownership change, users continue to play.

Furthermore, Wordle players engage in variations of the traditional game. “I play Nerdle and Quordle,” Nicole Mohr states. Nerdle has the same rules as the original Wordle but you are guessing a math equation instead of a word. Quordle is a variation from Wordle with the same rules, except you are to guess four different words in nine tries. Nagle also reports playing Quordle and Octurdle, an eight word variation, similar to Quordle.