~ Opinion ~

Wordle - that addictive word game that took the world by storm back in 2022 now requires a New York Times' games subscription to access WordleBot's analysis of a player's game and the internet is divided.

If you're not a Wordler, you might want to look away now. As one non-Wordler put it, "stop trying to make Wordle sound interesting". 

But it is interesting. 

It’s a (maybe) salutary lesson about news and paywalls at a time where NZ news media is crumbling. 

It’s definitely interesting to the millions of people who play the game daily and want to see how they stack up against each other, the bot… and the world!

Admittedly players are fewer than in Wordle’s heyday of 2022 but they are nothing short of committed – you definitely know an addict or two whether you’re aware of them or not.

If you are a Wordler, you'll likely already have a view on that paywall and your missing analysis… and I'm guessing you’re conflicted; torn between coughing up, outright quitting and holding out.

For those of you who don’t know Wordle, the game gives players a chance to guess one five-letter word within six tries.

There’s just one word per day.

Every player is competing to guess that same word in the fewest possible attempts.

Its compelling social aspect is that players can share and compare their results with friends, without ‘giving the game away’ (pun intended - couldn’t resist) by revealing what the day's winning word actually is.

It's this competitive element that has led to the formation of millions of groups around the world within which Wordlers share their results, discuss their inevitable moments of triumph and despair, debate over the best starting words and compare strategies.

Lots of people do this. 

Every day. 

You may scoff, but this daily kind of commitment has saved at least one life... possibly. 

In February 2022, Chicago woman Denyse Holt failed to share her daily Wordle score. 

Her worried daughter convinced Chicago police to do a welfare check on the 80-year-old and it turned out that Denyse was being held hostage by a naked home intruder armed with a pair of scissors.

I say, “possibly” because by all accounts, the intruder wasn’t very well mentally and wanted a bath more than to murder (disturbing nonetheless). 

Google it. You really couldn't make this up.

Anyways, it's not just the daily sharing that makes it addictive. 

Once a player completes the game, the ‘WordleBot’ gives you the option of analysing your performance against itself and (wait for it) … every other player in the world that's played the game that day.

It's this addictive competitive assessment that now sits behind the NYT paywall which has some players up in arms, stalking away from years-long streaks and cursing the paper.

One X (formerly Twitter) user wrote, “putting my wordle stats behind a paywall is nothing short of demonic behaviour and make no mistake you WILL pay for it someday @NYTGames”.

There are many even stronger messages on X but I think that gives you the gist. 

Does the paywall mean you can't play Wordle anymore? 

No.

It doesn't even mean that you can't play and share your result with your friends.

You can still see your stats (how many games you’ve played, won and your current winning streak).

It only means that you can’t compare yourself against the bot, or that ‘little black book’ database where you can see your own performance stack up against the world’s.

The cost of the paywall? US $1.50 / month for your first year. Not even $20 US a year.

It’s a tiny amount. It’s also a deal-breaker.

Quality news is expensive. We know that. 

When The New York Times Company bought Wordle, by their own account they gained an unprecedented tens-of-millions of new users.

Players immediately feared the game would be altered or lost to them via a paywall but until recently, NYT had maintained the spirit of its social contract in entirety.

And now that’s changing. 

It’s changing not just there, but everywhere. 

As another commentator put it, “they bought it, they own it, they can charge for it”. 

So, where does that leave us? What price a free press?

Because if the most ardent Wordlers, the people who have steadfastly given their loyalty to the game and (de facto) to NYT on the daily, over years, have taken such umbrage, publicly decried this betrayal and en masse abandoned their passion… paywalls may not be a halcyon cure for what ails news media providers here and everywhere.

My question to you is what would you rather? Advertising? Paying for games? Paying for news? Or should it always be both unencumbered and free?

Let us know what you think - email [email protected] or head to our Facebook page and send us a message.

As for the grieving Wordlers out there… we’ve loaded some new games for you. You might want to check out Antiwordle (Antiwordle - avoid the secret word daily game).There’s no AntiwordleBot but it could be a new but different love you can play and share for free.