Wyna Liu, the editor of the daily Connections puzzle, has seen the word game become a global sensation in a matter of months, rivaling even the popularity of its New York Times stablemate, Wordle. Liu constructs the seven daily games each week using ideas she gathers from her daily experiences. She keeps track of themes and word ideas in a spreadsheet, but also relies on a notebook for when inspiration strikes. As the game has gained popularity, Liu has adjusted the puzzles based on solver’s experiences and expectations, sometimes incorporating word clusters that may trick players. Each game board is created from scratch, requiring time and effort to ensure a challenging yet engaging experience for players.
The aim of Connections is to group 16 words into four categories based on association. The game’s difficulty is indicated by color, with yellow being the easiest and purple being the most challenging. The puzzles are designed to be interesting and engaging by incorporating techniques such as homophones and wordplay. The themes for the categories can vary widely, ranging from Halloween costumes to music genres. Players must move quickly and strategically, as each incorrect guess counts towards a mistake tally. Players are allowed up to four errors before the game is over. Those who struggle can shuffle and rearrange the board to try to make the connections easier, or be challenged by words that can belong to more than one category.
One example of a Connections puzzle included words like “clear,” “earn,” “make,” and “net,” all falling under the category “take home, as income.” Each category is labeled with a color, and if all four words are correctly placed, they are removed from the board. Players are challenged to group words such as “fiction,” “humor,” “romance,” and “travel” into the category “bookstore sections.” The game requires critical thinking and problem-solving skills to make connections between seemingly unrelated words. Players have the opportunity to improve their scores over time by playing daily puzzles released at midnight in their local time zone.
Liu is thrilled by the overwhelming response to Connections, noting that the game resonates with people in unexpected ways. She takes pride in the game’s evolution with solvers and enjoys the challenge of creating new and engaging puzzles each week. By building the boards from scratch and constantly adjusting based on feedback, Liu ensures that each game offers a fresh and stimulating experience for players. Newsweek remains committed to promoting uncommon knowledge and finding connections in the search for common ground, showcasing the power of puzzles like Connections to engage and challenge players around the world.
