Wordle a daily habit for youngsters

Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon, Succession actress J. Smith Cameron and American folk-rock band The Lumineers — what do they all have in common? Love for the online word game, Wordle. Guess the five-letter word in six tries. The game created by Josh Wardle, a software engineer in Brooklyn, for his partner became an instant hit and went viral.

Edugraph speaks to youngsters who have made Wordle a part of their daily routine and WhatsApp status.

Being a part of the trend

Most people were intrigued when their social media feed got bombarded with screen grabs of green and grey boxes and scorecards. So was I and decided to give it a try and soon enough Wordle became a habit. “The game allows me to establish my intellectual superiority over my friends and become a part of the trend. Every day I have new challenges set for myself. It allows me to flaunt my vocabulary. The game makes me think till I can solve the puzzle. It introduces new words every day, which makes it unique,” said Srijon Jana, a second-year medical student at Jagannath Institute of Medical Sciences.

Flashback

The game is sure to take you a nostalgic ride. Even the official Twitter account of Cartoon Network tweeted — Not Wordle, just your childhood — with an image that resembles the logo of Cartoon Network and the Wordle scorecard.

“I like word games and am familiar with games of this genre. The act of finding out a word by hit and miss is undoubtedly exciting because there are only six attempts per word and you are up against your wit. Another feature I love about the game is that it is non-competitive,” said Krittika B. Dutta, a third-year English student at Jadavpur University.

The game format

Most fans find the 24-hour format unique and a boon in disguise. Some feel it keeps them from being on the game all the time, while others feel no matter what it’s an addiction as they can’t stop themselves from playing. “The main reason why people give up playing online games is that it consumes a lot of the player’s time. That is not a problem with Wordle because it allows one game a day. Also, there is this aspect that everyone is playing the same thing every day, which helps us to connect with other fans,” added Srijon.

Hassle-free

The game is not restricted behind a paywall and has fewer advertisements. It is also easily accessible because it does not require you to go through any registration processes. “The game improves how I think and how promptly my brain can process information. I can log into the game without having to create an account which is a departure from most games because they require you to be logged in through an account to play. Most word games have this inherent feature where they use difficult words intentionally to make the game tough, but Wordle uses words that you have heard of or words that you use in everyday conversation, thus it makes the game simple yet intriguing,” said Prantik Sengupta, a master’s student pursuing Journalism and Mass Communication at Jadavpur University.

Morning ritual

Wordle has turned into a ritual for those who play it. “These days the first thing I do after getting out of bed is play Wordle. I have figured out that sometimes the pattern of the words is linked to the alphabets of the previous days' words. It is luck, so there is a fair probability that you might not get the previous day’s alphabet. I feel extremely satisfied once I have been able to solve the word in less than six attempts. It is a part of my daily to-do list and once I have completed it I feel a sort of self-gratification,” said Arkajyoti Mohinta, a second-year Law student at Calcutta University.