The absolute chokehold Wordle has on the world is a bit frightening when you think about it.

I work the evening shift at Ellis Library, from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. (torture, I know) as a safety security officer. At exactly 12:03 a.m. (Yes, I’ve timed it) I can expect several radio calls among my coworkers that go a little something like this:

“Security 30 to Base, have you played the Wordle yet?”

“Base to Security 30, 10-4. And I won’t tell you my score because I know you’ll just tease me about it.”

“Well, you’re not wrong … I got it in three, so beat that!”

“Base to Security 30, I’m turning off my radio in protest of your score.”

This happens on a nightly basis.

In a certain way, Wordle has brought us all closer together to solve a much larger issue than whatever is going on in our personal lives: What on Earth is the word for today? We joke about it and tease those who take the full six rounds to solve the game, and we celebrate those who solve it in two or three tries.

It harkens back to simpler times, like in 2016 when people of all ages could be found roaming the streets hunting for Snorlaxes in the hit mobile game Pokémon Go.

Certain moments in history tend to bring the world together in unexpected ways (Remember that cringey celebrity-studded “Imagine” cover at the beginning of the pandemic? It haunts my nightmares). This time around, the unifying factor is a simple word game, in which players must guess the correct five-letter word in six tries or fewer.

Players are given certain clues when they guess a word wrong — green means the correct letter is in the correct spot, yellow means the letter is in the word but is in the incorrect place and gray means the letter is not in the final word.

Our biggest debate among the security staff stems from what is considered to be the best “starter” word. Some go for all vowels, like “adieu.” Others knock out the common consonants, as in “north.”

However you play, you must be able to back up your argument. I once met someone whose starter word was “happy.” Happy?! Are you kidding me? There is no excuse for such an abysmal starter word.

Below are the musings of my wonderfully talented and beautifully brainy Fun and Games section, plus a few Maneater staff members who wanted in on the fun. They did the digging so you don’t have to. If you need tips and ticks on how to play the OG Wordle, new spin-off recommendations or a story to get a good chuckle out of, read on.

Oh, and if you’ve been living under a rock and somehow managed to escape the Wordle craze up until now, well, you’re in for a real treat. Head to The New York Times website to play for free (not sure how much longer THAT will last).

All the best, and happy Wordling,

Abby Stetina
Outgoing Editor of Fun & Games

“Lewdle is my favorite spinoff when I need a good laugh. Any bad word in the book basically works for this game. The same rules for Wordle also apply for Lewdle, so it’s easy to catch on.”

— Abby Stetina, Fun & Games

“My personal favorite spinoff is Octordle, which is a deranged game and also probably quite on brand for me as a crossword writer. You need to get eight words in 13 tries. It’s terrible. I love it.”

— Evy Lewis, Fun & Games

“Hey fellow Swifties! Taylordle is one of my favorite spinoffs when I’m feeling like testing my Taylor Swift knowledge. Words range from song names to details about her life.”

— Ever Cole, Fun & Games

“May the force be with you. SWordle is my favorite because I am a huge Star Wars fan; my dog is named Obi-Wan Kenobi. It’s all Star Wars-related, drawing from all of the movies and TV shows for its word bank, but the downside is that it isn’t limited to letters. So you have to know your numbers when it comes to this spinoff. Go ahead and start your journey, young Padawan.”

— Bri Davis, Fun & Games

“I like the Duotrigordle; yes that’s a thing, haha. It’s 32 boards in one, and you have only 37 guesses. I also really enjoy the Moviedle; it gives you a one-second clip from a movie, and you have to try and guess the movie!”

— Anna Griffin, Photo

“My favorite Wordle spinoff is Squirdle, it truly tests your Pokémon knowledge! You’ve got eight guesses to identify a Pokémon based on type, generation, height and weight after inputting a species name, and there’s a new one every day.”

— Naomi Klein, Fun & Games

“Framed is the absolute best spinoff. Every day, you’ll have six tries to identify a movie based on unique or iconic frames of said movie. For all my moviegoers, this is an absolute must-play.”

— Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval, Website and Visuals

“Statistically, the best word to start with is ‘crane!’”

— Elisabeth Ivens, Fun & Games

“Personally, I start with ‘story.’ It knocks out a bunch of common consonants, and you’d be surprised how often the ‘Y’ can narrow things down! Plus, you know, it’s thematic.”

— Evy Lewis, Fun & Games

“My strategy is to not restrict myself to a single word to start with; I like to keep Wordle on its toes. Every morning when I open Wordle, I try to come up with a new starter word and not overthink it. Some of my favorites I have used on multiple occasions include ‘thane,’ ‘gnome,’ ‘humid’ and ‘scope.’ I find coming up with the first word the best part of the game.”

— Abigail Henshaw, Fun & Games

“My best advice would be to start off with the word ‘their’ and then use ‘pound.’ A friend of mine says that they start with those two because they use up the most vowels and common letters. It makes it easier to pick letters that way. The goal when starting the game is to get rid of almost all the vowels and any letters that are more common than others.”

— Bri Davis, Fun & Games

“I always start with ‘north.’ Why? No clue, but some words just have a certain vibe, no? To me, that’s ‘north.’ Funny that I live smack-dab in the middle of the Midwest. I can’t really say I’m north of much of anything.”

— Abby Stetina, Fun & Games

“Wordle is part of my everyday routine, and it is such a blast. My family got me hooked on it, and now we always share our scores with each other and compare notes. We’re a little competitive about it, but mostly I just love how this puzzly game has brought us together.”

— Faith Schilmoeller, Copy Section

Edited by Alex Cox | acox@themaneater.com