By: Tech Desk | Mumbai |
March 3, 2022 11:30:19 am
Wordle clones on the app store and play store have lakhs of downloads. (Express Photo)
Clones apps that are blatantly copying the Wordle formula, including the name, are now back on both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. Some of these apps are downloaded by over 10 lakh users. While some of these games offer the exact experience as the viral web-only daily word-puzzle game, others offer a slightly varied experience with features like no daily limit on words. In January, Apple had removed several clone apps from the App Store, but they are app back now.
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Wordle was acquired by The New York Times earlier this year and now has shifted from the original website to the NYT website, where it now appears with some new changes, including a new font, as well as a new list of daily solutions that separate the NYT version from any cached versions of the old Wordle.
The problem with Wordle clones
Wordle has a lot of variations available on the web. While some let you play the game by guessing only swear words, others offer a no-cap experience, letting you guess words of up to eight characters in length. There is even a version of Wordle that brings in the battle royale formula, letting you compete against 100 Wordlers.
Some Wordle clones found on the Apple App Store. (Express Photo)
However, while these sites are popular, the clone apps on mobile app stores are a different story. They act on monetising the free experience that Wordle is supposed to offer. A check on the reviews section in one such clone app gives us a quick insight on what’s going on with these applications.
Players can often see an ad pop up after every word, some of which require you to wait for a few seconds before you can find the ‘X’ mark and get rid of the add, only for it to appear again after some time. This not only hampers the experience, but also damages the reputation of the original Wordle game, which is free for all users, has no advertisements and requires no sign-up.
With New York Times hinting at the fact that Wordle may eventually go behind a subscription paywall of some kind, whether the clone apps are morally wrong or right remains debatable. However, we doubt the cloned applications have the rights to redistribute Wordle or a variation of it for commercial purposes. If you play a cloned version of the game on your phone, don’t be surprised if the application suddenly gets taken down from the App Store or Play Store in the weeks to come.
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