New York Times Buys Popular Word Game 'Wordle'

The New York Times has acquired the popular Wordle word game that's recently taken the internet by storm, the newspaper announced on Monday (January 31).

"As The Times looks to entertain more solvers with puzzles every day — especially during these anxious times — we’re thrilled to announce that we’ve acquired Wordle, the stimulating and wildly popular daily word game that has become a cultural phenomenon. Wordle, which gives players six tries to guess a five-letter mystery word, will join New York Times Games’s portfolio of original, engaging puzzle games that delight and challenge solvers every day," the Times wrote in the announcement.

The game was released by Josh Wardle, a software engineer who had previously worked at Reddit in October 2021 and has since been played by millions of users.

“If you’ve followed along with the story of Wordle, you’ll know that New York Times Games play a big part in its origins, and so this step feels very natural to me," Wardle said in a statement shared in the Times' announcement. "I’ve long admired The Times’s approach to the quality of their games and the respect with which they treat their players. Their values are aligned with mine on these matters and I’m thrilled that they will be stewards of the game moving forward.”

The Times confirmed the game was purchased "for an undisclosed price in the low-seven figures" in Monday's statement.

Wordle will remain free to play for new and existing users and no changes are scheduled to be made to its gameplay, the Times confirmed.