If you are not living under a rock then you might have heard about this spelling puzzle game called Wordle. It has become a sensation over the past few months, with more and more people posting their scores and results to Twitter and other social networks each day. The game’s success has already resulted in countless clones, and now the original game will soon have a new owner.
Josh Wardle, the developer of Wordle, announced on his Twitter account that The New York Times (yes, the news organization) has acquired the game. He said, “since launching Worldle I’ve been in awe of the response from everyone that has played. […] The game has gotten bigger than I ever imagined (which I suppose isn’t that much of a feat given I made the game for an audience of 1). On the flip side, I’d be lying if I said this hasn’t been a little overwhelming. […] Given this, I am incredibly pleased to announce that I’ve reached an agreement with The New York Times for them to take over running Wordle going forward.”
Wardle said that his game was inspired by The New York Times’ own games, so the acquisition is fitting. Wordle was acquired for a price “in the low seven figures,” according to The New York Times, and the game will “initially remain free to new and existing players.” It’s likely the game will include advertisements in the future, or become locked behind a recurring subscription, like other games and services provided by The New York Times.
For the moment, Wordle is still accessible for free at powerlanguage.co.uk/wordle. There are also many alternatives and clones available on the web, Apple App Store, and Google Play Store. Word Bound is one game with similar mechanics, and the code from one open-source clone (aptly called “Wordle Clone”) has been used to create other twists on the core gameplay, like Primel with prime numbers instead of words.