Puzzle News, Tips, Tricks & Ideas

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Unlike most games, you don't start with a map to help you navigate around in. Thankfully, you can find it in the very early stages of a playthrough as you start working your way around. is a unique Metroidvania,offering players plenty of puzzles to complete and many secrets to uncover.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Xbox Game Pass is about to become a whole lot more appealing for couples as an incredibly well-reviewed co-op game is about to arrive on the subscription service. Microsoft recently unveiled the next batch of games that is set to arrive on Game Pass over the last few weeks of May and while its the usual assortment of AAA heavy-hitters and indie gems, those looking for some multiplayer fun are especially in luck. In an age where couch co-op is so often forgotten, it's certainly refreshing to have such a great option when friends come over to visit.

After a 2023 packed with generation-defining games, it felt like 2024 might be more of a comedown. There weren’t a lot of big new releases scheduled to drop outside of a busy first few months, and heavy hitters like Grand Theft Auto 6 aren’t arriving until 2025. Traditional wisdom would have you thinking that gamers were in for a very slow year with few highlights.

May 19’s answer is relatively easier compared to some of the solutions this week. However, players should still be careful, as it is possible to lose their streak to random guesses. While the answer only has one vowel, finding other letters will be slightly more difficult. So, it is recommended to use a different mode or some starting words that will give you a slight edge.

Games have steadily become larger and larger as the generations go on. Thanks to the most advanced console and PC technology, developers are able to craft massive worlds and stories that would have been impossible in the past. While many of us enjoy sinking our teeth into a meaty 100-hour-long game from time to time, eventually fatigue will set in. That’s where games on the other end of the spectrum come in. These games aren’t afraid to tell a tight, compact story, or to explore a single gameplay concept, and then call it a day without stretching things out. They are no less impactful or memorable than their massive counterparts, and may even be superior in some player’s eyes. Here are a few of the best games you can beat in a single day to cleanse your palate with some more experimental titles.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

As the weekend approaches, you’re probably happy that you’ll soon have more time to check out some video games. And if you’re an Xbox Game Pass subscriber and aren’t sure what to play, you have a lot to choose from. That’s where I come in. I’ve looked through the Xbox Game Pass lineup and found three games that I think all kinds of players can have a good time with this weekend.

May 18’s answer is bound to throw many players off as the answer is slightly more complicated than usual. The answer contains only one vowel, so you will need to be a bit careful with your attempts from the very beginning. However, if you use starting words that will let you discover some of the letters, you might have a fair chance. You can also use a different mode if you tend to use random guesses often.

Surpise-hit indie Animal Well was released late last week and already seems to have trapped a sizable number of players with its gorgeous pixel aesthetic and world full of secrets to uncover. Despite being a single player game, one particular secret puzzle will supposedly require 50 players working in concert to solve. Warning: vague spoilers for a post-game Animal Well secret puzzle to follow!

Publisher Secret Mode and developer Cosmonaut Studios has just announced the long-awaited console port of its intriguing puzzle adventure, Eternal Threads. Initially announced for PS4 back in 2022, the game is now finally coming — with a PS5 version too — on 23rd May, 2024.

Paper Trail is a puzzle game which takes a simple premise, folding and unfolding paper, to create a unique experience. You play from the perspective of Paige, a young woman who leaves home to pursue her academic dreams whilst meeting some weird and wonderful characters along the way.

It feels oddly surreal to be reviewing a classic like Braid in the year 2024. If one were to rewind back to 2008 when it first released onto Xbox Live Arcade, the video game landscape would look far different than it does today. Braid, alongside other indie classics like Super Meat Boy and Fez, reshaped the entire indie game industry, inspiring hundreds if not thousands of games in the years following its release. It proved that independent creators and their passion products can thrive on digital storefronts while holding their own against AAA releases at the time. In the years following its release, Braid has become one of the most notable indie games of all time, being featured in Indie Game: The Movie. While it never received a sequel, the release of Braid, Anniversary Edition provides fans of the original an excuse to revisit the world on modern platforms.

Indika is a game of wild contradiction. It's compelling, thoughtful, and ambitious, but also tedious, rote, and derivative. It's the sort of video game that ruminates on the nature of devout faith, free will, guilt, shame, temptation, and morality, and then asks you to solve boring box puzzles. It's the sort of video game that asks you to solve boring box puzzles and then leaves you earnestly wondering whether the box puzzles were intentionally boring just to mess with you.

New puzzle game isn't for the faint of heart, but developer Simogo has a unique approach to opening up the game to all audiences. As the studio behind games like the impressive and, Simogo has never been especially bound to convention. These games also have a knack for knowing where to streamline things and where to branch out in new directions, which is a lot of what makes them so easy to pick up and get immersed in.

Indie game developer Simogo has a long track record of interesting titles, but its newest, , might be the most ambitious and unusual yet. As a complex puzzle adventure set inside a black-and-white hotel, it doesn't take long for the game to set itself apart from anything out there. What also becomes clear is just how much thought and creativity went into the experience, which took over four years to craft.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

May 17’s answer continues the theme from yesterday by presenting a tough challenge for players who aren’t fans of repeating letters. The word also contains two vowels in odd spots, making today’s puzzle even more challenging. However, these complications can be circumvented if players use a different mode in tandem with hints or strategic starting words.

Lorelei and the Laser Eyes Score Details Pros

Several puzzles in Lorelei and the Laser Eyesmade me wonder: What sort of sickos does it take to create this kind of game? The answer is the developers at Simogo, the Swedish studio known for pop rhythm game Sayonara Wild Hearts and puzzle games Device 6 and SPL-T. This new Simogo game pulls together different realities, layers of logic puzzles, math, and a distinct, undeniable ambiance. Everything is a puzzle in Lorelei and the Laser Eyes — even the story itself — and nothing is exactly as it seems.

is many things. It's the new title from Simogo and Annapurna Interactive, the developer and publisher behind the neon rhythm action game. It's 1847 and 1963 and 2014. It's the tale of Lorelei and Renzo, and Renate and Lorenzo, and maybe even Lorentz and Resnik. It's a puzzle box of glancing hints and shuffled solutions. It's virtually designed to be hit with accusations of pretension. It can't, at any rate, be accused of sticking to convention.

I have a couple of takes on Nico Papalia's new RPG Athenian Rhapsody, which launched on Steam yesterday and still has a demo. The first is that it's a brighter, glitzier version of Toby Fox's Undertale that looks like it belongs on Gameboy Advance - a retro parody created in GameMaker whose turn-based combat houses many an inventive minigame, and whose writing doesn't so much break the fourth wall as moonwalk along the parapet, showering the player in poop, anime tropes and off-colour mental health advice.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

If there is one thing that people who make and play video games love more than video games, it’s labels. People love to label a game, to invent a genre, to categorize and sort and declare some kind of rudimentary ownership. YouTubers have built entire careers around this.

Assassins Creed Shadows fans are trying to figure out a cryptic marketing puzzle hidden by Ubisoft.

Developer Daniel Benito has just rolled out his latest brain teaser PiKuBo on Android. This new puzzler promises to keep players like you entertained with its unique spin on the classic nonogram puzzle. The developer is known for his previous tile puzzle game Kanji Swipe.

If you have a Netflix subscription, but have yet to try any of the games included with it, you’re missing out. The streaming service has quietly put together a strong library of titles over the past few years, from certified classics like Hades to strong original games like Laya’s Horizon. Next week, Netflix subscribers can get another charming indie with their subscription: Paper Trail.

Twelve more games are coming to Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass service in May, adding to the five games that joined the service earlier this month. Little Kitty, Big City, meet the best puzzle game of 2023, Chants of Sennaar.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Microsoft has announced the Xbox Game Pass May 2024 Wave 2 lineup of games, headlined by Ninja Theory’s Hellblade 2.

Braid, the popular puzzle platformer, has finally made the much-awaited comeback with its Anniversary Edition. Originally slated for April 30th, Braid Anniversary Edition has launched on Android, iOS, PC and consoles today. It’s developed by Thekla and published by Netflix, and if you’re a Netflix subscriber, you can dive into it for free!

One of the new ’s stand-out features should undoubtedly be replicated by other Metroidvanias. Playing through the strange, puzzle-filled world of can often be tense, but the intriguing triple-layer structure of the game is perfectly designed to draw people ever deeper into its world. has arguably quickly become one of the best Metroidvanias currently available to play, and its unique take on the genre will hopefully inspire future titles in turn.

May 15’s answer is not the hardest to solve, but it could cause some players to waste their attempts if they aren’t careful. While there is a vowel in today’s answer, finding its correct position is inconsequential, as finding the other letters can be quite challenging. You will definitely need a strategy or some help if you want to solve the puzzle in less than six attempts.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Tuesday, May 14 has provided us with new to solve, and today's bunch of categories could be a bit difficult for some fans to decipher. There are a few niche topics and some very well-crafted misdirections. Take your time with today's game or you'll be in for a loss.

May 14’s answer is one of the most challenging puzzles the game has hosted yet and will even be challenging for veterans. What makes today’s answer unique is that it has two repeating letters, one of which is a vowel. So, you will need to find the repeating vowel and the second repeating letter in six attempts. Finding all of them in six attempts will be pretty tough, and we recommend using hints instead.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

May 13’s answer is a type of spice that not many players might be familiar with and could cause them to lose their streak. The answer also contains two vowels, which could be hard to find if players don’t use the right starting words. While the answer can be solved in six attempts, it will require some ingenuity and quick thinking.

Warner Bros., owners of the now-defunct Adult Swim Games publishing label, have contacted some developers about returning ownership of their game's Steam pages. The developers of both Small Radios Big Televisions and Duck Game shared the news on X yesterday. It's a seeming reversal of Warner Bros. stated policy back in March, when all Adult Swim Games seemed destined to be delisted.

has a lot of secrets to discover and locations to explore, but this new indie game on PC, PS5, and Switch has one room in particular that's particularly useful if it's found early on. As an unusual take on the Metroidvania genre, is all about unique traversal methods and varied puzzles, so it's easy to miss important things by pursuing a different path. Although some of its secrets are intended to be nearly impossible to find in a normal playthrough, others are definitely designed to be ferreted out for the purpose of having a complete experience with the game.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

I spent a lot of time contemplating the title of Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s new film Evil Does Not Exist. It still echoes in my brain, as I watch and rewatch the film. It’s a puzzle to turn over, a bitter lozenge lodged in my cheek. It’s almost farcical, how banal the movie’s premise is: a talent agency wants to set up a glamping site in a remote Japanese village, and sends two hapless PR reps to sell the community on the plan. Most of us don’t contemplate the nature of evil when considering glamping, you know? But maybe we should.

May 12’s answer may not be the most difficult, but it will still challenge some players if they don’t strategize beforehand. The answer contains three vowels, but their positions make today’s answer difficult to solve. Finding their correct spots without any hints could be quite challenging, but that can be made easier using a different mode.

A new set of are here and ready to be solved. There are some tough categories and today's answers could cause some players to lose their win streaks. Paying close attention and not rushing through will be the best way to win.

Obsessed with New York Times’ games? So are we, and Spelling Bee is one of our favorites. But just like any other NYT game — Wordle, Connections, Strands, and The Mini — we have trouble finishing it occasionally.

Nintendo has announced new The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom merchandise to coincide with the game’s first anniversary this week.

Mind-bending puzzle metroidvania Animal Well just released yesterday, and already a community of players is tearing the game apart to find its many, many, many, many secrets. Right now, that includes a ridiculously complicated puzzle that requires at least 50 different people to participate. And just one day after launch, the community is on the cusp of completing it.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

May 11’s answer could be slightly difficult to solve in six attempts unless players use some hints that point them in the right direction. Since the answer also contains two vowels, you might want to conserve your attempts or use a different one to find their correct positions. You can also use some starting words to give you a slight advantage for today’s answer.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Love crossword puzzles but don’t have all day to sit and solve a full-sized puzzle in your daily newspaper? That’s what The Mini is for!

You are an egg person. You wake up in a large turnip.

Netflix has added Sonic Mania Plus to its roster of games subscribers can access for free on mobile without ads or in-app purchases. The company first announced that it was going to add the title to its lineup, along with Game Dev Tycoon, back in December 2023. Sonic Mania Plus was developed for the franchise's 25th anniversary by fans known for their Sonic fangame creations and for their work in the ROM hacking community. It is frequently cited as one of the best Sonic games of all time ever since the original version was released in 2017. Sonic Mania Plus, which came out in 2018, includes additional content. Netflix says the version in its library will come with new levels and bosses, as well.

Connections is the latest puzzle game from the New York Times. The game tasks you with categorizing a pool of 16 words into four secret (for now) groups by figuring out how the words relate to each other. The puzzle resets every night at midnight and each new puzzle has a varying degree of difficulty. Just like Wordle, you can keep track of your winning streak and compare your scores with friends.

MUTAN has announced four Goonya Monster spin-off games: hopping action game Toad’s Soul Hopper, runner game Pirarucu’s Money Rush, shooting game Snail’s Knock Out, and balance physics puzzle game Octo’s Balloon Challenge. All four titles are planned for release in Early Access for PC via Steam. Release dates were not announced.

The enchanting world of The Enchanted World has now expanded its horizons beyond Apple Arcade. It has officially launched for global players on Android. The Enchanted World opened for pre-registrations on Android in early April. If you love games that have magic, mystery and mind-bending puzzles, then keep reading to learn more about this one!

A recent update for procgen whodunnit sim Shadows of Doubt added "Sharpshooter Assassins" with high-powered rifles to the game's glowering alternate-1980s cities, with players having to work out the killer's vantage point by deducing a bullet's trajectory, before proceeding to a secondary crime scene to search for a murder weapon and witnesses. The prospect of snipers certainly adds menace to the game's forensic sandboxing. The trouble is, the shooters aren't always as sharp as they could be.

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.