Bermudas and bikes? Arrows and eagles? There’s no possible way these could go together…right? You may not think so, but the creators of the New York Times Connections believe otherwise. Bermudas and bikes? Kinds of shorts. Arrows and eagles? Featured on the United States Seal.
This tricky word puzzle, along with Strands, Wordle, the Mini, and Letter Boxed come together to make up the New York Times Game collection, a popular and well loved group of games that challenge users daily.
The Connections has been around since early June 2023, and the Wordle made its debut October 1, 2021 after being purchased by the New York Times along with the Spelling Bee. The Wordle began with only 90 users but it gained popularity fast and has grown to millions of users since then, including students and staff of Atholton.
“I do it every morning before I go to school and it gets my brain active; I love the New York Times Games,” said student Charlotte Carmean. Another student, sophomore Natalie Aballo, stated that she loves all of the games, however, she likes the Strands most because “it really gets [her] thinking.”
The New York Times games have since inspired many websites to create similar challenges for their users, such as the USA Today “Quick Cross” inspired by the Mini Crossword, and Conexo inspired by Connections.
Spinoffs have also been created, such as Worldle and Globale that challenge users to guess countries. Many of these spinoff games have been blocked by HCPSS, forcing students to play on their phones outside of school.
Ms. Belson, an English teacher at Atholton also loves the New York Times Games and “likes that there are different types of games and how it’s not the exact same game” and added that they force her “think outside of the box.”
Overall the consensus is the New York Times games are an exciting way to get your brain working, and serve as a boredom buster in class, but what is the best game? Keep reading below to see our ranking, and if you have never played, think about giving one a try.
1. Connections
2. Strands
3. The Mini
4. Wordle
5. Tiles
6. Letter Boxed