Wordle

Last updated January 2, 2022

Wordle is an elegant (and addictive) word-guessing game.

The rules are simple. You have six attempts to guess a 5 letter word. With each attempt you are shown clues as to whether your letters are in the right place or if they’re not used at all (kind of like hangman).

A finished Wordle grid showing coloured letter tiles. — My current tactic is to start with ‘adieu’ to narrow down which vowels I should use.

The crucial mechanic is scarcity: there’s only one word a day, and everybody gets shown the same word… which instantly makes it a competitive social game despite having no in-built league table or multiplayer.