New York Times acquires viral game ‘Wordle’; to remain free for users initially

The viral vocabulary game ‘Worldle’ has now been acquired by The New York Times. It will now be integrated into New York Times’ games play.
The creator of the game, Josh Wardle announced the deal on Twitter today. Wordle has become extremely popular on Twitter with people posting their Wordle scores on their account daily.
Announcing Wordle’s acquisition, creator Josh Wardle shared on Twitter, “I am incredibly pleased to announce that I’ve reached an agreement with The New York Times for them to take over running Wordle going forward.
If you’ve followed along with the story of Wordle, you’ll know that NYT games play a big part in its origins and so this step feels very natural to me.
I’ve long admired the NYT’s approach to their games and the respect with which they treat their players. Their values are aligned with mine on these matters and I’m thrilled that they will be stewards of the game moving forward.”

Wardle mentioned that the game will be initially free for new and existing players. However, he hinted that the wins and streaks of users will be preserved.
The New York Times said it purchased the super-hit word game from its creator for a price “in the low seven figures”.
“The Times remains focused on becoming the essential subscription for every English-speaking person seeking to understand and engage with the world. New York Times Games are a key part of that strategy,” a statement said.
Wordle was created by Josh Wardle, a software engineer for his wife who loved word games like spelling games, crossword. “I wanted to come up with a game that she would enjoy,” he told The New York Times.
The game was made public in October 2021 and soon became the most played game online. It is a virtual game, which also works on some Android smartphones.