The world of word game apps is a compulsive one, and these multiplayer games are especially engrossing.
A Scrabble-like word game
Bertheussen ITWhat’s included?
• Standard version: free (with ads)
• Premium version: ad-free, gives player statistics
How to play
The gameplay is the same as Scrabble: you have a rack of seven letters and play against an opponent on a board that has double and triple letter and word squares. The highest score wins.
The arrangement of the high-scoring squares on the Normal board is slightly different from Scrabble, as are some of the values and quantities of letters. On the Random board, the arrangement of the high-scoring squares is randomised, which makes the game less predictable and focuses play onto the double and triple squares.
In a nutshell
Straightforward and pleasantly sober.
Pros
- Plain colours and interface
- It’s easy to understand and play
- The Random board is a fun twist
Cons
- Waiting for an opponent to make their move is frustrating
- Only after you try to play your letters is it clear if your word is valid
- Die-hard Scrabble fans might not like the differences in the board
A mashup of Scrabble and Yahtzee, based on anagrams and letter racks
MAG InteractiveWhat’s included?
• Free (with ads), with in-app purchases available
• Daily challenge, journeys, matches
• Single-player or multiplayer challenges
How to play
In two-player matches, you get a rack of seven letters and have five rounds to fill slots with words of three, four, five, six and seven letters. Your rack changes each round, and you can swap your letters twice per round. You get a Wordzee! bonus of 100 points if you complete all the slots in five rounds. Swapping your letters is a risk but can help you make better and longer words.
In a nutshell
A bit garish, but short, sweet and compulsive.
Pros
- Enjoyably addictive
- Enough variables to make every game feel novel
- If you play solo or against the app, you’re not always waiting for someone to play
Cons
- All the options can initially be confusing
- Quite gaudy and noisy
- Eventually, it becomes hard to progress without purchasing
The official Scrabble word game app, with the standard Scrabble board
ScopelyWhat’s included?
• Two modes: Scrabble Classic and Scrabble Go
• Scrabble Go mode includes a stack of features, as well as other word games
• Free (with ads), with in-app purchases available
• Different languages available
How to play
In Scrabble Classic mode, you can:
• Shuffle your letters
• Reveal the tile bag contents to see the remaining tiles
• View the turn history and get definitions of words played
• Review the match history and your own player statistics
In Scrabble Go mode, you get all kinds of additional fun features:
• The word power meter allows you to compare how highly your move would score against all moves possible
• You can view best play last turn
• You can trade ‘gems’ you’ve earned and swap your tiles without losing a turn
• Boosts prompt you with possible moves and board positions
In a nutshell
Action-packed, flashy and fun.
Pros
- The definitions of words played will appeal to sticklers
- It’s visually appealing, eg the letters shuffle themselves with a cute hop onto the rack
- You can use boosts to train yourself to find good board positions and words
- The value and validity of each move is displayed before you play
Cons
- The barrage of options within the Go mode feels a bit overwhelming at first
The official Boggle word game app
ZyngaWhat’s included?
• Daily challenge
• Live tournaments
• Games against friends or ‘the coach’
• Free (with ads), with in-app purchases available
How to play
You swipe adjacent letters out of a set of 16 letters to form words of three or more letters. Games against friends or the coach have three rounds of two minutes each. Using double and triple letters and words improves your score.
In a nutshell
A fresh take on a firm family favourite.
Pros
- There’s no waiting when you play against the coach, a twinkly Albert Einstein cartoon figure
- Power-ups, such as freezing the timer or viewing possible moves, allow you to practise aspects of your game and can even up mismatched players
Cons
- As with some of the other apps, the ads take ages to play
- Purists may not want to ‘cheat’ with power-ups