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Dear Reader,
You're reading the monthly newsletter from Amuse Labs, covering the world of puzzles, publishing, and updates to PuzzleMe™, the most advanced digital platform for smart games.
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New Games by The Washington Post, LinkedIn and The New York Times
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The Washington Post is offering a new beta game, Wridges, testing it with subscribers to their Game Break newsletter. Wridges is a time sensitive form of word search. Your goal is to work from the bottom up to form as many three-or-more-letter words as you can while racing against a 60-second clock.
LinkedIn has launched a new game called Tango. The logic puzzle is an iteration of Kurosu, which in turn is a tic-tac-toe inspired puzzle from Japan. In LinkedIn's version, there is a sun and a moon. You have to fill all the cells with either one without three of the same symbol appearing in the same line.
The New York Times is reportedly testing a new word puzzle that they're calling Zorse, available only to Canadian subscribers. In this puzzle, you'll be given a clue and blank tiles that spell a phrase related to the clue. You can choose to reveal 5 letters, and then guess the phrase at any time.
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The Wordle Origin Story You Didn't Know
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It's a common belief that Wordle, created by Josh Wardle, was the first game of its kind. Wordle is, in fact, a clever iteration of word-guessing games that have been around for centuries.
Those who have spent their childhoods playing the two-player board game Mastermind will remember the similarity to Wordle, with a player responding to your guesses with colored pins. Mastermind, in turn, was inspired by an 18th century game called "Bulls and Cows", which was played on pen and paper.
There are no original ideas, but there are clever adaptations of old ideas that can breathe new life into them. That is what made Wordle a breakout success. Read more about the reasons behind Wordle's popularity here.
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Have an idea for a game?
If you’d like to explore how games can help your website, get a free consultation with our experts. We’ll go over the process of launching games, setting up contests, results you can expect, and much more.
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The Fascinating History of the Jigsaw Puzzle
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Did you know the first jigsaw puzzle was created in 1767 by British cartographer John Spilsbury? He made it as a learning tool by cutting a map into pieces to teach geography. The name "jigsaw" comes from the 1800s when fine saws, called jigsaws, were used to create more intricate puzzle pieces, turning this educational tool into a popular pastime.
PuzzleMe's online jigsaws are easy to create and provide delightful solving experiences with multiplayer mode. Here's what Sarah Lewin Frasier, Associate Editor at the Scientific American, said about our jigsaws in an interview:
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"It never occurred to me that people would want to do online jigsaws. But apparently, they do… And you know, I didn’t expect it, but I really do like the jigsaw puzzle much more than I thought I would. It’s very meditative." – Sarah Lewin Frasier
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PuzzleMe Spotlight
A selection of features from PuzzleMe, the most advanced digital platform for games
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1. Introducing Self-Serve Onboarding
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With PuzzleMe’s new self-serve offering, anyone can create and launch their own games without the need for onboarding help. Whether choosing a free option or access to advanced features for a fixed fee, all users can now use our AI tools to make creation of their quizzes crosswords or word searches easier. See our plans and pricing here.
This update reflects our commitment to our mission from the start: to democratize the creation of what we originally called knowledge games, engaging and enjoyable word and logic games. By removing the layers of effort required to get started, we’re already seeing more individuals and organizations – from travel companies to universities – publishing unique puzzle experiences.
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2. Boost Engagement with "Ask a Friend"
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We’ve seen how much solvers enjoy our multiplayer mode and want to help more people discover it. That’s why we introduced the “Ask a Friend” option in the Assist menu on crosswords. When solvers gets stuck or think a friend might be able to help, they can “Ask a Friend” to join them, which will start multiplayer mode.
For publishers and constructors, this means more opportunities for virality through word of mouth. By making the online crossword experience more social, we aim to augment the crossword's ability to drive consistent traffic, loyalty, and organic growth.
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3. Image Library for Jigsaw Puzzles
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We're excited to announce that PuzzleMe now includes a handpicked selection of images in its jigsaw creator. Creators can select these images for use within their PuzzleMe jigsaws, saving them the hassle of sourcing and adding their own images.
Whether you’re looking for stunning landscapes, vibrant art, or sports-themed pictures, our image library has a wide variety of themes. The image library is live for free users already, and should roll out to paid accounts within the next few days.
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The Midwest Crossword Tournament took place in Chicago on October 5. This was the first crossword tournament in the midwest, with nearly 300 solvers joining for the online and offline versions. The puzzles, which are available to purchase here, included clues related to Chicago and the Midwest area.
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The Los Angeles Times published a special themed crossword titled "Traveling Foodie Pun-Fest" by constructor Elizabeth C. Gorski. The themed clues contain references to popular cuisines and travel destinations. For example, can you think of a "fruit variety inspired by a visit to an iconic Los Angeles attraction?"
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Puzzle of the Month
Residents of Montreal can now test their knowledge of the city's rich history with MTL Blog's mini crossword. The publication signed up using our newly launched self-serve offering, and created the Montreal-themed puzzle within minutes using PuzzleMe's AI CoPilot.
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About Us
Amuse Labs is the creator of PuzzleMe™, the leading digital platform for Smart Games. It is a B2B SaaS company trusted globally by brands and publishers, powering Crosswords, Sudokus, Jigsaws, Quizzes, Word Searches and more. Explore opportunities to partner by sending a note or applying if you’d like to work with us!
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Amuse Labs
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