MUM’S THE
WORDLE By Jo Henwood
Trial and error – two five letter words that sum up this year’s word game craze, Wordle.
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reated by Welsh software engineer Josh Wardle for his partner – an avid wordsmith and game player – the daily challenge has gripped the English speaking world and made the creator a seven figure pay cheque when it was bought out by the New York Times at the end of January. A web-based challenge, the simple aim is to guess a five letter word in six goes. The answer is the same for everyone and there is only one chance to play every day. There are hints and tips all over the internet about the optimum words to start with but if the answer is nymph you are unlikely to get it in the first go unless it is a fluke.
Wordle brings us all together and allows us to share some intellectual challenges.
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When you guess your first word, the letters will turn green, yellow or grey. Green means the letter is in the word and in the right place, yellow – it is in the word but in the wrong place and grey – that letter is not in the word.
Plurals aren’t really used nor past tenses but beyond that it’s simple. You can share your success with friends on social media using emoji blocks without giving away the answer but beware that those who don’t play, often vent their anger at this. Mersey Care clinical psychologist Katie Powell says Wordle is ‘an itch that needs to be scratched’. “Our brains enjoy puzzles like Wordle, Sudoku and crosswords, because of the challenge they present. When we are successful we get a dopamine hit so we feel a sense of reward or pleasure, which leads us to try again the next day. “The frustration we experience when we don’t win can also bring us back for more; we crave the sense of completion and satisfaction that winning can bring.” Wordle’s clever share option means it can be a social activity, with friends and family competing on chat groups. Katie adds: “Social media also feeds in to our reward system. When we post something and get ‘likes’ or engagement, it gives us a sense
of belonging and represents the acceptance of others. Not only is this rewarding in itself, but it is good for survival in an evolutionary sense. The fact that we post our scores gets people talking and more and more people join the craze, keeping the wave of Wordle going.”
Success gives us a sense of reward or pleasure. The lexical divisions across the Pond continue unabated with Wordle. Despite his Welsh roots Wardle lives in the US and sticks with American spellings. You may say tomato (tomayto) and I say tomato (tomahto) but the fury on social media when the answer is favor or humor is palpable. The day this article was written the Wordle answer was TRASH. Oh yes it was.
Find out MORE AT: The original free Wordle game can be found at nytimes.com/games/wordle
