The estimated reading time for this post is 4 minutes
Update: Quordy is no longer available from the iTunes App Store. See, Why Your Favorite iPhone Apps May Not Work in iOS 11.
Instead, I suggest you try Word Streak, which is a similar Boggle-type game you play against others.
=> Word Streak – Spend Your Next 2 Minutes Having Fun!
If my iTunes Library had a list of the apps I use most often, Quordy would be at the top. Quordy is a Boggle-like word game that I play every day, more than Angry Birds or any other addictive game. My affection for Quordy isn’t a recent development. I have been playing Quordy for years on a daily basis.
What keeps me playing Quordy when other games come and go from my iPhone? I’m absolute rubbish at the game. That’s right. I am really, really bad at Quordy. So why don’t I just give up at Quordy? I’ve been playing it for years so I should be great by now, right?
Quordy is a black and white 4×4 grid of letters. You make a word by pressing on the first letter and dragging your finger along the other letters. As with Boggle, you can’t use a letter more than once and no proper names are allowed.
You have lots of game play options with Quordy, including
- Time limit: 1, 3, or 5 minutes or unlimited time
- Minimum number of letters for a word: 3, 4 or 5
- Dictionary: Lite, Full (Scrabble) or Safe (Full without profanity)
I will leave it up to you whether you want to use only clean words on your game. But the choice to use the Lite or Full dictionary is a tricky one. Using the Lite dictionary means your percentage of words found will be much higher but it gets frustrating when you find a word but it isn’t in the Lite dictionary.
I have tried pretty much all of the different combinations and have settled on unlimited time, 3 letter words and the Full dictionary. That is, I want the maximum word possibilities in the maximum time. I can focus on a puzzle for days trying to get as many words as possible. I end the game when I think I’ve found all of the recognizable words (the Full dictionary has plenty of words I have never heard of) on the game board. That’s my goal, to find all of the words I know on the board.
But no matter how much time I have spent on a game, when I look at the results inevitably there are obvious words I have missed. Every time!
I think the reason that I keep coming back to the game is that I love the lessons that this game teaches about life. One of the best features of Quordy is that the letters rotate when you turn the screen. The letters rotate 360° so you can have four different views of the letters. If you think you can’t find another word, turn the screen 90°. Then turn it again. And again. By getting a new perspective on the puzzle you will be able to see words you didn’t see before.
Here is an example of the letters turned 180°:
Here is the same board right side up:
See how different the two boards look? It’s as if you’re playing a new game.
For yet another perspective, try stepping away from the game. When you have looked at the game from all the different angles, close the game and open it back up again later. You will see words you didn’t see when you played earlier.
[tip] Looking at something from a different perspective shows you things you couldn’t see before. [/tip]
Other features include a Pass and Play mode where you can challenge a friend to play the same game. You can set up challenges with friends by passing your device to them or connecting your email accounts.
You can see your results and compare the words you found with the words you missed on the board. You can also earn badges for different achievements along the way.
Each board is different, some are loaded with words, others have very few words to find. Here is a sample board with 253 available words:
You can make 3 letter words such as cat, act, tot, out, or go for longer words such as satire, gutter, reactors, and sachet. The longer the word, the more points you earn.
- 3 and 4 letter words are 1 point
- 5 letter words are 2 points
- 6 letter words are 3 points
- 7 letter words are 5 points
- 8 letter words or longer are 11 points
Going for as many long words as possible will increase your score to new records. Try the game board above and see how many words you can get!
Why don’t I just play Boggle? First, Boggle doesn’t have the letters turn when I turn the screen (the entire board turns so you don’t have a new perspective). Second, Boggle doesn’t have all of the options for game play. Third, Boggle has lots of bright colors that make the game a battery hog. Quordy is a soothing black and white screen that means it needs less juice from the battery and it can be a great game to play right before you head off to sleep. Finally, Boggle requires that you shake the device to start a new game. Not good for late night playing.
Will I ever master Quordy? I hope not. I’m enjoying the challenge of trying to do better. And I have a long way to go.
Do you enjoy word games? Do you have a favorite word game app you play frequently? Do you give up on a game when you master it? Let us know in the Comments section below!
Oh Carolyn, I would be horrible at that. I’m much better when the word is spelled out and I just have to locate it but having to come up with words with the letters there, that might drive me insane.
But it’s the challenge right! I can see why you would want to stick it out. Me, probably not! I’m more of a wimp…
🙂
Shoot, Adrienne, I wrote this with you in mind. I think you might like this game. It’s a lot of fun to hunt for the words in a pattern, very similar to the word search game you like. I like that you can look at the letters from a different angle and everything seems so different.
It’s funny Adrienne, I have never, ever thought of you as a wimp! If you tire of your word search games you might want to give Quordy a shot! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by and leaving your wonderful comment! 😀
Hi Carolyn,
Wow! This truly sounds amazing, and to be very honest something I had never heard of, nor tried. I agree with Adrienne there that I would be better off to have the words present in-front rather than come up with words! However, I would surely give it a try to get the hang of it, especially as you say it is so good!
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Hi Harleena, I think you would get the hang of Quordy very quickly. The ability to have the letters turn makes this game easier than the traditional Boggle app. It’s a bit more of a challenge than a classic word search puzzle game, but that’s what makes it more fun, I think!
Thanks so much, Harleena for stopping by and sharing your awesome comment with us!
Quordy sounds like an awesome game, although I am really bad at word games, or numbers for that matter.
I have been playing a board game at home, and it’s a lot of fun (I bought it when I was in the US about 10 years ago) called Sequence. I am really bad at that one too, but I enjoy it 🙂
At the moment, I’m not playing a single game on my iPhone or my computer. I’m not sure what’s happening to me, I used to play all the time 🙂
– Jens
Hi Jens, Wow, I just bought the Sequence game yesterday! I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but I’ll have to give it a try (yes, I bought the board game not an app called Sequence, lol!). What a coincidence.
I don’t think it matters if you’re good or bad at a game like Quordy so long as you have fun playing it.
I listened to a podcast last night called Zen and Tech which talked about the importance of play even for adults. Play helps clear your mind and helps you focus better when you get back to work.
So start playing Jens! All work and no play makes Jens a dull boy. 😉
Thanks so much for your visit, helpful tweet and awesome comment!
That’s funny. You bought sequence yesterday 🙂
After reading your post I decided to play a board game with my kids just before they went to bed. It was a lot of fun. Now, I’ve added it to iRewardChart, that we’ll have a game night if they get enough stars 🙂
I was playing civilization on my computer for years. I guess I better buy an iPad and some games as well 😉
Hi Jens, I love board games, that’s a great idea to use as an incentive for your kids on iRewardChart! I love it when you get to benefit from the reward too!
Yes, Quordy isn’t intended for iPad, but the game enlarges to full screen with no issues. I bet if you get an iPad, you will find lots of fun games to play!
So, if you get an iPad are you going to let your kids play games on it? That could be another iRewardChart incentive: 30 seconds of game play on the iPad for 100 earned stars. (Can you tell I hate to have my iPad out of my hands?)
I like your little ‘light bulb’ tip; that was like a ‘no, duh’ moment for me…………:).
I don’t know Carolyn, sounds like some thinking is involved; I would definitely have to do the ‘no time limit’ version.
Thanks for sharing, maybe that will be one of my apps………:)
Hi Bill, Yes, thinking is involved with Quordy, but not too much. I like the unlimited setting, takes the pressure off. You can relax and just stare at the board mindlessly for as long as you want. You might just find words that way!
Yes Quordy could be one of the apps on your iPhone. It was one of my first apps and it’s still on my home screen!
Thanks so much for stopping by and adding to the conversation, Bill! I appreciate your awesome tweet as well. 🙂
Haha awesome Carolyn! It’s always good to have a quick game you can whip out when you are waiting for a movie to start, sitting at the DMV, or pretty much anywhere.
I’ll have to keep that on my list of apps to checkout.
Thanks,
Bryce
Hi Bryce, Great point! Another reason I love this game is because it’s so easy to pick up and put down again. Some games you hate to leave because you get so involved in planning strategy that you don’t want to put the game down.
With Quordy you can play the game if you only have a few minutes to spare. Plus you know putting the game down and picking it up again might actually help you find more words!
Definitely check out Quordy. It’s easy to write it off because it doesn’t have fancy graphics, but that’s a plus in my mind because it barely uses any batter power.
Thanks for coming by and leaving another insightful comment, Bryce!
Sounds interesting. I’ll give it a try. For word games, I like Words with Friends and then I like my Sudoku and Spider for number games the best on my iphone.
Hi Cathy, Wow, it sounds like we have very similar taste in games! Have you found a Sudoku app that you really like? I used to have one on my old Palm Pilot that helped me learn the game by explaining hints to me when I got stuck. I haven’t found another game like that on the iPhone.
I think you’ll really enjoy Quordy, Cathy. Let me know if you give it a try.
Thanks so much for sharing your favorite games with us, Cathy!
Carolyn,
Loved this post! I am word game obsessed, though I have never played Quordy. I’ll have to check it out cuz Boggle is one of my all-time favorites, and at the risk of sounding a bit full of it, I could kick your tush! In fairness – my Dad (the most competitive person I know) taught me how to play Scrabble when I was five. I could barely read…and he wouldn’t let me win. So it’s in my genes. Online, I’ve played Scramble, Words Free, Tangleword (that’s another version of Boggle)…if it requires finding words, I’m in. Anything to do with math or numbers – I’m sure to lose!
Hi Ruth, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Wow, I’m so glad you love word games too! My husband is awesome at Scrabble. How he manages to get all the triple word score tiles filled with X’s Z’s and Q’s, I’ll never know.
Let me know if you get Quordy. I would love to set up a challenge game with you. I haven’t really taken advantage of that aspect of the game. Just remember, I’m really, really bad at the game so if you like to win, I’m a great opponent!
Thanks, Ruth, for stopping by and leaving your awesome comment!
Downloaded & purchased. Let me practice a few rounds and familiarize myself with the features. Then I’ll DM you my username. And cross my fingers that I don’t have to eat my words! (forgive the pun)
Sounds great. I hope you like the game, Ruth!
I love games like these. They’re very addictive. I plan on downloading this game now 🙂 Thanks.
Hi Rochelle, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! I love this game and I hope you do too. Even though I’ve been playing it for years, I don’t think I’m addicted. That’s not just denial talking, but I find it easy to put this game down and pick it up. I don’t play it for hours at a time either. When I first got into Tetris, I was very addicted to that game. But I find that I tend to burn out on addictive games.
I hope you enjoy Quordy but don’t become addicted to it! 🙂
I’d suck at this one, to be honest. 😀 I don’t like word games. 😀 I read some customer reviews in the App Store and people seem to like this one a lot. So you’re not the only one who likes it. I might be the only one who doesn’t. 😀
I do give up on games when I master them. The problem with iPhone is that you don’t even have time to master a game. There are a lot of apps and games that you get lost.
Hi Mouh, I actually think you would be very good at this game. Anyone who can design graphics like you can must be able to look at projects from all different types of perspectives.
I tend to focus on a game or two at a time. I have loads of games on my iPhone and iPad, but I don’t play them all. I like to really get to know a game, decide upon strategy and then play it until I have mastered it.
Thanks so much, Mouh, for your visit and awesome comment! 🙂
Carolyn, aloha. Even though you are a bit weird around the edges, I love you anyway. Please don’t tell me you find that relaxing.
Though I am not a game player, I do enjoy Scrabble–probably because I have a great memory and can remember strange words.
My friend with the iLife likes the game that is numbers you line up different ways. She has that app on her phone and plays with it while she is waiting in line, etc.
Look forward to your review of the new iPhone. Until then, aloha. Janet
Hi Janet, Weird around the edges? Janet, I have to say that you’re wrong about that. I’m weird through and through! 😀 But I’m glad you love me anyway.
Yes, I admit it, I find word games relaxing, but only if they aren’t timed. If you enjoy Scrabble and remember strange words, you might be quite good at Quordy!
I hope you enjoy my review of the new iPhone!
I am heading right over to itunes download this. Neatly written and makes one really want to give it a try.
Hi Praveen, I’m so glad you enjoy word games too. This is one of the best! Let us know how you like it. 🙂