New York Times : Solvers can now play Strands in the New York Times Games app

Are you a Wordler? Part of the Spelling Bee Hive? Can't go a day without completing Connections? Get ready to add a new puzzle game to your daily routine.

Strands, a new word search game from the New York Times Games team, is here. Starting this week, solvers can play Strands in the New York Times Games app for iOS and Android devices. Strands joins New York Times Games's other puzzles, like Connections, Wordle, Spelling Bee, The Crossword and The Mini in the Games app. Free to download, the app offers puzzles for every level so you can steadily improve your skills.

Like Connections before it, Strands was first introduced during an annual event called Game Jam, where members of the Games team gather to explore ideas for new games. The pitching process is open to everyone, something that differentiates the New York Times Games team from other studios. From there, the game followed our proven in-house development process, to deliver a clean, elegant, and elevated user experience, with content crafted by the experienced award-winning NYT Games puzzle creators.

Along with desktop and mobile web, Strands will be available later this year to play within the Play tab in The New York Times app.

How do you play Strands?

The objective of Strands is to find theme words that all have something in common, and a spangram that describes what they have in common.

• Today's Theme is a clue on the board meant to guide gameplay.
• The spangram must touch two opposite sides of the game board.
• Finding three words that are not part of the theme will unlock the "Hint" button and highlight the letters that make up a theme word.
• Players can connect letters vertically, horizontally and diagonally, and can switch directions in the middle of a word.
• Theme words fit the grid perfectly, with no letter used more than once.

The Strands beta opened in March 2024. Since then, the daily puzzle game created by the Games team, with content edited daily by Tracy Bennett, has attracted a dedicated following of puzzle fans and solvers who enjoy anagrams or games like Boggle and Scrabble.

As noted in a recent Gameplay column, what makes Strands a New York Times game is its human touch. "The editors are known for crafting clever wordplay, testing solvers' knowledge and coming up with lively themes. All of the puzzle editors and some other Games team members contribute their own word lists."

Strands is currently our third most searched game, behind Wordle and Connections. Even before joining the NYT Games app, Strands has grown to be nearly as popular as Spelling Bee, our other word game. We consistently see 83% of Strands players finding the Spangram each day, and completion rate is around 81%, similar to the Mini Crossword and Tiles.

"Strands embodies our mission to create thought-provoking human-made puzzles that resonate with our audience," said Jonathan Knight, head of Games, The New York Times. "This game offers a fresh take on word searches, with a unique twist that challenges solvers and keeps them coming back for more. We are excited to see how players connect with Strands and make it part of their daily routine."

The introduction of Strands to The Times's portfolio of games further solidifies The Times's commitment to delivering diverse, quality, and human-crafted puzzle games for all skill levels that everyone can enjoy playing every day.

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