[News Terms] Google Search No.1 'Wordle'

Five-Letter Word Guessing Game
Surpasses 10 Million Visitors in Just 3 Months Since Launch

Wordle game screen / Photo by Wordle homepage capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] This year, the word that internet users worldwide searched the most on Google is "Wordle," attracting significant attention. Instead of century-defining issues like "Ukraine" or the late Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, a word-guessing game took the top spot.

Wordle is a game developed by American software engineer Josh Wardle in October last year. It was released through a website and is currently accessible to anyone for free. The game is played on a word board consisting of 5 columns and 6 rows. Players must find a word made up of five alphabet letters, and they are given six chances to enter words. When a player inputs a guessed word on the board, hints are provided.

If the user's guessed word contains letters in the correct answer, those letters are marked in yellow; if the letter is in the correct position, it is marked in green; and if the letter is not included in the correct answer at all, it is marked in gray. Using these hints to narrow down the possibilities and guess the correct word is the rule of the game. The Wordle game updates once every 24 hours, and those who guess the correct answer must wait until the next day. The same applies to those who fail to clear the game after using all six chances.

A method of guessing the correct word by looking at hints based on the colors of the letter board. / Photo by Wordle homepage capture

Wordle, which is intuitive yet requires quick thinking and wit, spread rapidly among internet users worldwide after its release. Within just three months of its launch, it surpassed 10 million cumulative visitors. Tips and know-how about Wordle were shared on social networking services (SNS). Some websites collected past Wordle puzzles, and variant games that adapted Wordle, originally based on English, into local languages were created. In Korea, there is "Kkodeul."

Riding on its popularity, Wordle was acquired by the famous American media company The New York Times (NYT) in January. The exact acquisition amount was not disclosed. The current website owner, NYT, continues to offer Wordle for free.