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Since its release in October 2021, nearly 3 million players have found a new love for word games in Wordle. If you're one of them, then you know there's a bittersweet feeling to making that final guess of the day.
For those who don't know, Wordle gives players six chances to guess a five-letter word. Each letter will be highlighted to give you some clues for your next guess. The answer is the same for every player and only changes once per day.
So if you're looking to fill that Wordle void for the remaining 23 hours and 50 minutes of the day, we have some great board game alternatives to Wordle that will bring you all the fun of Wordle in a physical format.
Think Words
Think Words is all about speed. A category card is drawn (think "Things in the Bathroom") and players take it in turns to shout out a word relating to that category. The catch? You only have 10 seconds, and the word can't start with a letter that someone else has already used.
The game board is a letter ring, omitting Q, U, V, X, Y and Z. Once a player has said their word, they push down the first letter of their word on the ring. Now no one else can use words beginning with that letter until the next round. For example, a player could say "sink," and then press down the S, followed by the timer to mark the start of the next player's turn. The next player then says any word relating to the category that doesn't begin with S. If the 10-second timer runs out before the player can come up with a word, they're out for the round.
The round ends when either all of the letters have been used, or when only one player remains. The winner of the round gets to keep the category card. The winner of the game is the player with the most category cards at the end, or the first player to win a set amount of rounds.
If you'd like to read more about Think Words, we have a blog review available here.
Letterpress
Letterpress is about creating the highest scoring word using the five cards in your hand, as well as three public cards on the table. To get their hand, players start with five cards each, choose one to keep, and then pass the hand to the next player. Everyone does this until all the cards have been selected.
Different letters have different amounts of points assigned to them. Easy letters to play, like A, are worth fewer points than more difficult letters, like Z.
The first four rounds are played to win more cards. Round five is the final showdown. The winner of this round wins the entire game.
Letterpress also has an option for solo play. In this mode, the player aims to use as many of the cards as they can to improve upon their previous score each round.
If you'd like to read more about Letterpress, we have a blog review of the game available here.
Word Cube
Word Cube is a fast-paced family game. The first play thinks of a word (eg. Donkey) then flips over the first letter of the word (D) on the cube, resets the timer, and passes it over to the next player. The next player then has to think of a word that relates to the previous word, and also starts with a different letter! It's similar to Think Words, but without the categories. Meaning that the theme can change with each person, as long as it's related to the previous word.
There is also an added challenge with the Word Cube, as players have to turn the faces to see the different letters available. Try to think of a word, turn over the letter, and reset the timer before it runs out!
3 Wise Words
Big Potato's newest game is possibly one of the most exciting board game alternatives to Wordle, full of all kinds of extra features. 3 Wise Words is a game all about reading minds! Okay, not exactly, but you'll have to be quite in tune with your partner. Your mission is to get them to guess the word you're thinking of, using only three other words as clues.
Your word is chosen with a card and the roll of a dice. The card you draw has three different words on it, which are colour coded to match the dice. You then roll to see which word your teammate will be guessing. One teammate guesses the word, while the rest of you work together to come up with clues. You can write down three words to help your teammate guess - but be careful not to make it too obvious, because the other team can guess your clue words and steal away your points.
Points allow you to move your little owl meeple up the board in a race towards the end of the track. The first team to reach the end is the winner!
Word Stacker
Recommended by The Good Toy Guide in 2016, Word Stacker is about stacking letter cards on top of each other to create new words and earn points. There are lots of different action cards sprinkled in to help you boost your own score or sabotage your opponents. Your clever moves are rewarded with special point cards that help you keep track of your genius as you play. Wordstacker is a great family game suitable for a wide range of ages, and you can increase the possible player count simply by having multiple copies of the game.
Word games can provide endless fun. Sadly, a new Wordle puzzle only comes once a day. But our great board game alternatives to Wordle should keep you busy for as long as you want them to!