It appears that Apple intends to compete with the popular New York Times word game Wordle, which was launched in October 2021 by Josh Wardle. The idea of ​​the game is simple: you have to guess a word of 5 letters that is chosen randomly every day. You get 6 attempts to guess. Correct letters appear in green, and letters in the wrong place appear in orange. The goal is to guess the secret word in as few attempts as possible. The game is very easy but has become so popular that it is addictive, going viral on social media with people sharing their daily scores. The New York Times Company bought Wordle in January 2022. Apple recently decided to compete with this game by releasing Quartiles in the latest beta version of iOS 17.5, so here's everything we know about it so far.

From iPhoneIslam.com, a modern smartphone displaying an iPhone application in front of an old Macintosh computer.


How to find Quartiles game

In the latest beta version of the iOS 17.5 update, Apple added a new puzzle game called “Quartiles” that is only available to Apple News Plus subscribers, and it may become free after that. The game depends on placing parts of words in 5×5 squares, and then players must arrange them to form possible words.

From iPhoneIslam.com, a smartphone displaying a calendar app, placed on a lined notebook next to a toy robot and a wooden clothespin, on a black surface.

Quartiles can be found in the Apple News app in the “Following Next” tab and under the “Puzzles” section for users of the iOS 17.5 beta update. At first glance, the game looks similar to the New York Times game in terms of appearance and gameplay.

Players are shown a grid containing syllables and parts of different words. The goal is to form words using these syllables. The game offers a daily updated puzzle, offering players a new set of five “Quartiles”, each consisting of four options to choose from. Although it may seem obvious, Quartiles, like other word-based games, requires a certain level of knowledge of the English language to play effectively.

Apple's introduction of this type of game implies that it is targeting its success with the New York Times and wants to enter into fierce competition with it, and instead of just repeating and cloning it directly, it aims to make its Quartiles game more challenging.


Word-based puzzle games are difficult and not suitable for everyone

From iPhoneIslam.com, a smartphone displaying a calendar app on a blue backlit iPhone keyboard.

It's important to note that word-based puzzle games usually have a difficult learning curve, and sometimes even seem impossible. It requires a certain level of prior knowledge and experience, which may exclude speakers of English as a second language, or those with learning difficulties.

A good puzzle game introduces the intricacies of each puzzle gradually until the player feels they have progressed enough and do not need further practice, like my game Portal و The WitnessIn these two games, you start with simple levels, and then you are presented with more complex levels little by little.

This way, when the player reaches the end of the game, he will feel that he has advanced enough and mastered the game, so he will not need further training or explanation.

Good puzzle games should follow this approach, starting out simple and then gradually getting more complicated as the player progresses, rather than being too difficult from the start.

In most cases, puzzle games from the New York Times or Apple don't offer any incremental improvement. Mini crosswords are the best, but they are just as difficult as regular crosswords and take less time.

Games like Spelling Bee and Connections are favored by many not only because they are easier, but also because they take less time to complete.


How to play Quartiles

From iPhoneIslam.com, two iPhones display a word puzzle game with selectable tile options on the screens.

In Apple's game Quartiles, it's like a game spelling beeBut it is much more difficult. In Spelling Bee, you feel like you're making progress by guessing the shorter words first and then the longer ones. But in Quartiles, you will be stuck in a loop where you have a lot of options and cannot make a decision easily.

◉ In Quartiles, players have to match 25 word snippets, which is considered a challenge.

◉ The game only allows players to shuffle the tiles randomly, which increases the difficulty. Even after trying all possible combinations, there is still a feeling of not being able to solve the puzzle.

◉ Unlike other games where every success makes the next step easier, Quartiles makes you feel frustrated and not making progress.

◉ Quartiles also requires a subscription to Apple News Plus, which is disappointing.

Overall, Quartiles is a frustrating game and many would prefer other puzzle games with clearer objectives and progression.

 

Don't you think it is very strange for Apple to enter into this field, or might it be just an experiment and will not be released in the public version? Tell us in the comments.

Source:

gizmodo

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