Five letters, six guesses, once a day

In a world where our phones buzz incessantly with breaking news notifications, vague threats from apps we haven’t used in awhile, and, oh yeah, emails and texts, it’s nice when something plays hard to get.

Wordle, this month’s viral sensation, is notable in its rejection of the tactics that typically fan the flames of the games and apps that spread this quickly. A once-a-day word game that gives each player six guesses to reveal a five-letter word, it’s a recluse compared to other popular mobile games of the day.

Not only does it not send you a notification when a new game generates, but the only way to play is to visit the website of creator Josh Wardle. There’s no app, no increasing levels of difficulty, no in-game purchases. It’s just you, five letters, and six guesses.

Without the push to play, there are plenty of days where I don’t remember it exists until the middle of the afternoon, and it’s as delicious a break as finding a box of cookies hidden in the cupboard.

Our days are prescribed in a way that optimizes productivity and achievement. Wordle laughs in the face of plans and strategy. Yesterday’s puzzle took me six tries, but today, just as the grid will empty and the target word will regenerate, I’m blindly confident that it’s going to be a two-guess day. When it inevitably takes four or maybe five, I won’t be mad because I solved the puzzle, and today’s result has no bearing on tomorrow’s.

And that’s something we all need more of. Surprise and delight that can’t be overindulged, that still sneaks up on us from time to time. Something that feels pretty hard at the beginning, but with each successive try becomes a little clearer. A concrete action that turns into a concrete result.

It’s a deceptively simple game. There’s some strategy to it (RSTLNE of Wheel of Fortune fame represents around 45 percent of all letters in a standard English text, for example), but not enough to tie your brain in knots.

And I don’t know about you, but my brain is often knotted from other less rewarding puzzles. So I invite you to try Wordle today for the first or fiftieth time, and to drop your result in the comments.

Just for fun.