Wordle’ssudden rise in popularity is perhaps one of the strangest cases of a game going viral. The simple word-guessing game had been going for a while before it began to truly pick up steam, but something about the puzzle it presented made it something people couldn’t help but share around. Fast-forward to now, Wordle is easily one of the most popular puzzle games, even for those who have never played games before.
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With this, Wordle has actually become a gateway for some into either similar games based around words or more in-depth puzzle games. And getting more people into this medium is always a good thing, so this list acts as somewhat of a guide for easy points of entry from the complex to the simple.
Updated by Philip Gunns on January 31st, 2023:There are so many other puzzle games that offer a similar experience as Wordle, so we’ve updated this list to include ten more games.
One of the most well-known puzzle games and a very good entry point for those wanting to get into more traditional games.Portalthrows you into the Aperture Science Testing Facility, a labyrinth of puzzles run by an evil AI. The only way you can make your way through is with the signature portal gun.
The game’s central mechanic of portals is so much fun to use, whether to get around or in how it interacts with the other mechanics. The game is also well known for its hilarious writing, as throughout the game, you’ll be playfully berated byGlados, who is an absolute riot. On top of all this, the game is short and sweet, so almost anyone can beat it, so there’s no reason not to give it a shot!
19Words With Friends
An old classic perfect for anyone who just enjoys the simplicity of word games. Words with Friends is an online version of the classic game Scrabble, and the formula works just as well digitally. You’re given a pool of letters and have to connect and make words like a crossword puzzle with more complex words giving more points.
The game is simple to understand but hard to master both in terms of having the vocabulary to know the best and longest words and how to play the board which can net players extra points. With easily being able to get into a match with friends, it’s no wonder this game became a viral sensation.
18Patrick’s Parabox
If you want to step up your puzzle game experience, Patrick’s Parabox goes beyond thinking with portals and goes into thinking with abstract space. Patrick’s Parabox is a game all about just sliding boxes to certain spots; the only problem comes in that most boxes are pocket dimensions you’re able to enter, exit, and loop through.
You really have to think outside the box with Patrick’s Parabox, as even the surrounding space isn’t set in stone and can be worked with. Not to mention that these mechanics somehow get even more complex as you go along for an even more brain-melting experience.
17Letter Quest
A much cuter and more colorful take on a word game, Letter Quest is the beautifully animated take on a word scramble game! The game is inspired by the old Bookworm games, as in order to combat monsters like the Grim Reaper, you have to try to put together the longest words you’re able to with a pool of random letters.
Though, Letter Quest goes beyond just following an already successful formula, as the game features loads of content, with each level having plenty of challenges that will actually really challenge your brain, plus upgrades, unlockables, and more! Combine that with an adorable animated art style, and you have a pleasant game everyone should try!
16The Witness
WhileThe Witnessmay seem like a perfect game for those wanting simpler puzzles, this is a deceptive appearance as, under the surface, The Witness is one of the most testing and esoteric puzzle games in recent memory. In this game, you find yourself on a strange island filled with puzzles all about moving a line to an endpoint, you’re left on your own to figure out what you’re meant to do and what it all means.
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The main trick of The Witness is that not only is no story explained to you, but not a single mechanic is explained while exploring the world. You get very simple puzzles at first to give you an idea of how the line puzzles and a few mechanics work. But everything else needs to be parsed out as you figure out the very rules of the game.
15Scribblenauts
For those wanting something lighter still based around using words,Scribblenautsis exactly that! The game is well known for its central mechanic, you get a notebook, and anything you write down will become real. While you can’t make real people or copyrighted characters, you can still make quite an impressive amount of things to use to travel around and collect stars.
The game offers a world full of simple puzzles that end up extremely fun for just how open they are! Scribblenauts is not at all strict with its solutions, and you’ll be surprised by what it will take and let you win. This sheer freedom makes Scribblenauts a fun game to mess around with and see what you can do, perfectly fitting how it asks players to express their creativity!
If you enjoy playing Wordle with friends and comparing your results, Drawful may be an excellent game to connect over as well! Drawful is a party game initially part of theJackbox Party Packseries, the game plays out like Pictionary but with a unique twist where rather than just guessing, players get to submit their idea of what it looks like or what they were trying to draw in order to fool other players.
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This results in a fun strategy as players are trying to both be as convincing as possible and actually figure out the drawing. Not to mention, it results in a very funny time due to people’s drawing abilities, the wild guesses people can have, or just people having fun with their lies. It’s a fun time to try out next time you have friends over!
13Baba is You
Baba is Youmay be based around just using words, but it couldn’t be more different from Wordle with how complex and mind-bending it is. Baba has a simple premise, each level is filled with words you can push around and put into statements like “Baba is you” or “Rock is push” that change how the game itself works.
While this starts out simple, it soon escalates into puzzles that make you have to rethink how to play the game as a whole in order to solve them. The ways you twist the very world around get super creative, like making yourself the word or deciding what empty space itself is like and is. It gets mind-bending in the later sections, but still, give it a shot as it eases the player into it quite nicely.And the game even lets you play around with these tools now!
12Guess the Game
If you’re already into games and want something more in line with your interests, Guess the Game is an excellent Wordle-like game based all around the medium! The game works very similarly to Wordle but with a few differences. You still only have 6 guesses but rather than tell you the correct letters, each incorrect guess gives you a new, more specific screenshot.
It’s a very simple game to test your knowledge of games, and thankfully it doesn’t get old as the creators choose a variety of games from old to new, from AAA to indie, and from famous to infamous, allowing everyone’s knowledge to shine. If you want to see how well you know the history of games, give this one a shot!
11Redactle
For those who enjoy the simple deduction but want a real brain tester for each day, Redactle is Wordle’s more difficult and complex twin. While you may get unlimited guesses in this game, that doesn’t help much, as rather than guessing a single word, you have to piece together a completely blacked-out Wikipedia document to figure out what it is for.
The game offers a unique challenge of following up on threads to unlock parts of the document and making massive breakthroughs that allow you to get closer to the subject. It makes you feel like a real detective picking up clues to solve the mystery. If you want something to make you scratch your head, give this one a shot.
