The New York Times has a selection of games, from the internet famous Wordle to their newest, Strands. While Strands is still in beta, the game has taken word searches to a whole new level.
The game starts off with eight unknown words that fit under one theme. Players look for the unknown words in a word search format. Words can be found in any direction and length. Once a word is found, players double click the last letter of a word, which is then highlighted in blue. Incorrect words are not highlighted, and any words that do not fall under the theme can still be used for hints to reveal a word location, once three extra words are found, players can use the “hint” button to reveal a word under the theme.
The longest word in each puzzle is the “Spangram” which touches two opposite sides of the board and is highlighted in yellow. Once every letter in the board has been used, and all eight words have been found the game is complete.
Like all other games from The New York Times, the game refreshes every day, giving players a new adventure daily. So, is it worth playing?
At first glance, this game looked pretty much like a normal word search. But the variation of ways the words could be arranged is interesting, it makes the game challenging. The themes can definitely be tricky, so I usually use a few hints at first, but it’s a nice spin on a classic game. Once you understand the theme, the puzzle is pretty easy to solve, for the most part the themes are okay. I’d say winning is pretty easy.
However, the game is still in its beta testing phase, which means changes can be expected although it’s in its final stages. Overall it’s a good game, and personally I hope it sticks around.
