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This is an archive article published on July 13, 2022

We found 6 addictive word games to spice up your groupchat

Let the trash talking begin!

friends cast in a scene from the hit showEntertaining word games can keep you at the edge of your seat. (Image source: Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, Warner Bros. Television)

This story is part of our new Puzzles & Games section, which offers daily crosswords, sudoku and a special weekly quiz. Sign up to start playing, and follow @iepuzzles for more game ideas!

Planning a game night is no easy feat. Making your friends show up on time is the first challenge. The second? Brainstorming what to play, as quips and complaints pour in.

To save you precious time, we’ve compiled a list of six fun word games that you can play with friends online. No downloads are needed—simply type these games’ addresses into your browser, and start playing:

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1. Letterbox

How to play: In 60 seconds, make as many words as possible using nine letters shown on a grid. The longer the words, the more points you get:

screenshot of letterboxgame.com, which shows white letters on a blue background Tricky letter combinations can show up on Letterbox. If you get an ‘S’ like this, try plurals for a higher score. (Source: letterboxgame.com)

No. of players: Min. 2-3 to be competitive, but you can also play solo. 

Play here: http://letterboxgame.com

2. Codenames

How to play: Codenames is a cult party game that tests your ability to link diverse concepts. To play, operatives from two teams (red and blue) must compete to guess the secret cards assigned to them on a board. But there’s a catch: only the spymaster (leader) of each team knows which cards are red, and which cards are blue—everyone else is guessing blind. To help their operatives pick the right card, each spymaster must speak in code, and write down one word that acts as a clue to link their team’s cards. The team that correctly finds all of their cards first, wins:

No. of players: Min. 4, to allow at least one spymaster and one operative per team. Codenames is best played via voice chat, for easy coordination. 

Play here: https://codenames.game

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3. Google Feud

How to play: Predict the top 10 most popular online searches on a given topic. You’ll get a partial search prompt to start with, and must make educated guesses on how Google would auto-complete that search query. The format is based on the hit US show Family Feud:

6 addictive word games you can play with friends I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. (Source: googlefeud.online)

No. of players: Min. 2 to solve as a team, but you can also play solo. Use a voice chat to make the guesses together!

Play here: https://googlefeud.online

4. Eldrow.io 

How to play: Like the name, it’s Wordle in reverse. In Wordle, you use the placement of green, yellow and grey tiles to guess a word within six tries. In Eldrow, you are given one solved word as the answer, and must find the previous word that led to it. A set of five words are released daily, and it can be challenging for even the best Wordle players to get them all right:

eldrow wordle spinoff game The yellow tiles hint that two letters except R and E from the word ‘THREE’ are present somewhere in the blank word, but at a different spot. (Source: eldrow.io)

No. of players: Eldrow doesn’t have a live multiplayer option, but you can compete with 3-4 other players via voice chat to see who finishes first. You can also play solo. 

Play here: https://eldrow.io

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5. Scattergories 

How to play: If you passed out of school in the last 10 years, you might know the game ‘Name Place Animal Thing’. Well, Scattergories is the more intense version. First, players must join a lobby where an admin can pick multiple categories out of 30 free options (e.g. ‘bad habits’, ‘movies’, ‘memes’). Once the game starts, everyone gets the same letter (e.g. ‘C’), which must be used to name one thing in each category. When the clock stops, everyone weighs in on whether your answers were valid, or too creative:

scattergories word game screenshot Example of a completed list of answers before the timer runs out. (Source: scattergoriesonline.net)

No. of players: Min. 2 to be competitive, but you can also add bots to play with. The answer ‘approval’ process at the end is best done via voice chat. 

Play here: https://scattergoriesonline.net

6. Wheel of Fortune – Toss Up Challenge

How to play: The game selects a secret (but well-known) phrase around a common topic. Once you press ‘Play Now’, the letters making up the phrase will slowly appear on a tiled board. The goal is to quickly guess the phrase before all the tiles are revealed:

screenshot of wheel of fortune online word game When you know the answer, tap on ‘Solve Puzzle’ to stop the tile reveal. (Source: wheeloffortune.com)

No. of players: Min. 2 to be competitive, but you could also play solo or as teams. There is no live multiplayer setup, so you can compete via voice chat. 

Play here: https://www.wheeloffortune.com/play/toss-up-challenge 

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That’s our list so far for entertaining word games that adults would enjoy playing. Do you know any other crowd-pleasers that should make this list?

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