What the heck is Wordle and why is my company (probably) blocking it?

21 January 2022 - 08:22
By Kyle Zeeman
Wordle has taken the world by storm.
Image: 123RF/NENETUS Wordle has taken the world by storm.

Move over Candy Crush, Clash of Clans, Animal Crossing and Flappy Birds, there is a new addictive game sensation in town.

If you haven't heard of the word game Wordle, you soon might.

It has swept across the world, going viral on social media and sparking competition among neighbours, friends and even family members.

The goal is simple: you get six tries to guess a five-letter word.

The word is the same for everyone and changes daily. Each time a letter is in the right position it turns green. If the letter is in the word but in the wrong position it turns yellow. If it turns grey, the letter is not in the word at all.

So, like many, your day could be made or spoilt by a series of green, yellow or grey letters — welcome to life in 2022.

The best part? It is completely free.

According to the New York Times, Wordle was created by software engineer Josh Wardle last year as a love project for his partner, Palak Shah.

Like us, Shah totes loves word games, and immediately became addicted to Wardle's creation.

They kept the game between friends and family for several months before unleashing it on the world, where it has thousands of people playing every day.

The internet is PACKED with strategy guides on how to guess the word of the day, and even your grandma will no doubt have an opinion on how best to do it, but you might not want to try it at work.

While it is great for downtime, many companies have firewalls on their internet services that restrict access to games, and this is seen as one of them.

A friendly call to the office IT guy might help, but chances are he's too busy playing Wordle to answer.