So, what’s the good word?

The next time you find yourself stuck with just your smartphone for company, instead of collecting candies, murdering fruit, keeping zombies at bay or whatever else the latest gaming addiction is, how about challenging your brain with some vocabulary building? And while we in no way imply that entertainment doesn’t have value unless it’s backed up by some learning, there are some seriously fantastic word games out there.

Scrabble

Yes, the classic word game Scrabble is available in a mobile avatar for smartphones and tablets. The gameplay, of course, doesn’t need any introduction, but the app lets you play by yourself (against your smartphone/tablet’s computer brain), with a friend — either using the same device or online — or a random opponent. You can have multiple games going, and there are numerous features to crank it up a bit, such as the Speed Play mode or the Teacher feature that lets you see the best word you could have made. Scrabble is available free for Android and iOS, though an ad-free Apple for iPad comes for Rs 620; no option for Android users yet.

SpellTower

This is basically Tetris but with words. Form words to wipe bricks off the board before they can pile up and reach the top of the screen. Five different play modes are available: Tower, Puzzle, Extreme Puzzle, Rush and Debate. Available for Android (Rs 107) and iOS (Rs 120).

7 Little Words

This is a game likely to appeal to those who like crosswords and jumbles. In each 7 Little Words game, you must find the seven words to match the seven clues provided. You have a set of 20-word tiles — each with two to four letters — from which you must build these words. Puzzles are organised by theme, which are pretty varied, from Giraffes, Bamboo, Bubble Gum, Polka Dots and Hedgehog to Butterflies, Bridges, Oceans, Robots and Dreams. You get two free puzzles packs (100 puzzles), plus a daily free puzzle, but others need to be purchased (Rs 60 upwards). You may browse puzzle packs according to difficulty levels or themes. It is available for iOS, Android and Windows devices.

Writer Rumble

If you want to take it up a notch in a literary way, Writer Rumble is the app you want to try. This is a Boggle-type game where you must find words from a grid of letters in a given period of time, but there’s a twist — words are your weapons against the enemy. In Writer Rumble, you must choose your literary champion — like Agatha Christie, Edgar Allen Poe, Jane Austen or Homer — each with their own powers. You can play with a friend (split-screen) and pit these greats against each other, or play against the computer or an online opponent. If you play against the computer, you fight enemies pulled from your respective champion’s work. Sounds cute? Don’t be so sure, the pace can get pretty hectic, to the point of being frustrating. This iOS game is free, but you must shell out to unlock all the literary characters.

W.E.L.D.E.R

If you thought all word puzzles were rehashes of Scrabble or Boggle, you haven’t seen W.E.L.D.E.R. This iOS-only game is super-fun and well worth the Rs 190 price tag. The title stands for word examination laboratory for dynamic extraction and reassessment because, well, to play, you ‘swap metal tiles to form words. Once forming a word, the W.E.L.D.E.R. machine will dynamically extract the word, and the word will drop into the Word Tube for Reassessment!... Every word you form scores points, and the more points you score, the more swaps you have to keep forming words!

You must form a specific number of words of four or more letters to complete each level.’ Some tiles are worth more than others, some are too hot or toxic to touch… well, basically you just have to play this game!

Source | Indian Express | 8 September 2015