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Once I realized that solving in one guess or two doesn't take any particular skill, I began to wonder what "winning" Wordle really means. It's a game that you

Once I realized that solving in one guess or two doesn't take any particular skill, I began to wonder what "winning" Wordle really means. It's a game that you play for fun. If folks want to analyze the dictionaries to develop their strategy because it's fun for them, then they're doing it right. Not cheating. If you prize Wordle solution patterns that are symmetrical or aesthetically pleasing because it's fun, then you're doing it right. If you try to see how many consecutive hard-mode guesses you can make with NO correct letters because it's fun, then you're doing it right. If you try to see how far you can skew your distribution towards six without ever losing because it's fun, then you're doing it right.

jibalt 5y ago
Nicely put.
serial_dev 5y ago
Very well put, especially with the focus on the fact that having fun means different things for different people. I played the game maybe twice, the game itself is just very boring and hard for me (though generally, I hate playing games, so it's not a critique on the game). But! I read the source code and checked the implementation. I read many different strategies optimizing for different aspects of the game. I implemented a very naive solver in JavaScript, then I thought about more advanced data structures and algorithms I could use to improve my naive solver (both from the game's POV and from the computational POV). I watched videos cloning the app with different frameworks (or without) and technologies (mobile, command line, web) and I listened to the author on a podcast. I'm having fun and I'm learning while doing these things, so I appreciate Wordle, even if I can't be bothered to solve the daily word.
fheisler 5y ago
Agreed, I like discovering interesting patterns and strategies, but always using the same 'best' openers is less exciting. I made a browser extension to show remaining solution counts and make it easier to restart the game without losing my streak - I usually use it to play around more after solving the day's word. https://github.com/everythingishacked/Hackle https://github.com/everythingishacked/Hackle
lupire 5y ago
Being good at solving Wordle means having a low average score. (About 3.6 is best). You can't "win" that in one isolated day.

jibalt 5y ago

Nicely put.

serial_dev 5y ago

Very well put, especially with the focus on the fact that having fun means different things for different people. I played the game maybe twice, the game itself is just very boring and hard for me (though generally, I hate playing games, so it's not a critique on the game). But! I read the source code and checked the implementation. I read many different strategies optimizing for different aspects of the game. I implemented a very naive solver in JavaScript, then I thought about more advanced data structures and algorithms I could use to improve my naive solver (both from the game's POV and from the computational POV). I watched videos cloning the app with different frameworks (or without) and technologies (mobile, command line, web) and I listened to the author on a podcast. I'm having fun and I'm learning while doing these things, so I appreciate Wordle, even if I can't be bothered to solve the daily word.

fheisler 5y ago

Agreed, I like discovering interesting patterns and strategies, but always using the same 'best' openers is less exciting. I made a browser extension to show remaining solution counts and make it easier to restart the game without losing my streak - I usually use it to play around more after solving the day's word. https://github.com/everythingishacked/Hackle https://github.com/everythingishacked/Hackle

lupire 5y ago

Being good at solving Wordle means having a low average score. (About 3.6 is best). You can't "win" that in one isolated day.