Word games are a great way for kids (and adults) to
"play" with words as they build vocabulary and spelling
skills. Here are some good software choices and online sources
that will feed your need for addictive word games like Crosswords,
Jumble, Word Searches, and more.
The
Software
 An excellent
all-in-one software title that contains 9 addictive word games is Hoyle
Word Games 2002. It's great fun for practically the whole
family--multiple difficulty levels for the games make it
appropriate for people ages 9 and up. Players design a face as
their identity, then select from games like Crosswords, Word
Search, Anagrams, and Hangman. Some strategy games are included as
well, and most games can be played head-to-head. Computer
opponents range from an animated Grandmother to a sarcastic alien.
Their skill and even talkativeness levels can be easily controlled
by the player. Internet play is also an option. The program is
packed with options--probably far more options than the average
player will make use of. The result is an easy-to-use,
customizable program that is appropriate for people with varying
skills, tastes, and ages. This is a well-designed, excellent
software program. [Buy Hoyle Word Games 2002
at Amazon.com]
 If
your daily newspaper’s Jumble game simply isn’t enough, it’s
time for Jumble CD-ROM. We love the funky retro design of
this well-constructed game. Featuring a number of different
variations of the game, including a "kiddy" version,
this program is sure to please. The only thing we miss is the
ability to pause the timer during a game. For
those unfamiliar with the basic game of Jumble, players are
presented with a comic pun, and by unscrambling a number of words,
they’ll uncover the (jumbled) letters to the word or phrase that
answer the pun or riddle. It’s a quick fix for word game lovers. The
game can be copied entirely to the
hard drive, so running the CD-ROM is not even necessary. A jewel
case version (who needs the box anyway?) of this program is
currently available for just under $10 US, and you’ll find it
bundled with other Infogrames games in different packages,
including Word Mania. [See
our review. Buy Jumble (Jewel Case)
for only $9.99 US at Amazon.com]
Crossword lovers can't go wrong with Dell Crosswords.
Appropriate for kids and adults, this CD-ROM contains 1,200+
puzzles pulled from Hoyle Word Games (mentioned above) and Dell
magazine. Players can choose easy, medium, or hard crossword
puzzles, play the game head-to-head, and choose from a few options
to customize the game. Puzzles can be printed--even ones in
progress. [Buy Dell Crosswords
at Amazon.com]
 Scrabble fans
will enjoy Scrabble CD-ROM. They'll be able to play the
game even when no one is around to compete with. The game's
computer opponent is Mavis, and players can choose Maven's skill
level. Even die-hard fans of the board game version will quickly
notice the advantages of playing the CD-ROM version--the game is
faster when played against the computer (Maven's turn is
instantaneous), options to customize the game exactly to your
liking are abundant, and the program contains a slew of mini-games
and word lists that actually help you to improve your game.
Note that there are a number of different versions of the
game--the link that follows is the best version of the bunch. If
you are purchasing the game in the store, look for a version by
Infogrames or Hasbro released 1999 or later. [Buy Scrabble (with Official Players...
at Amazon.com]
For a fun
variation on Scrabble, you might want to try UpWords CD-ROM.
Because of its more straightforward rules and scoring, kids will
find it a little easier to play than Scrabble, and its multiple
difficulty levels mean that adults can be challenged as well. In
UpWords, players spell words
on the game board grid using their letter tiles in order to score
points. The twist here is that there’s a third dimension to
game-play – letters are stackable, so that lone can not
only become alone, but also long or along.
Very fun! [See
our review. Buy Upwords (Jewel Case)
for only $9.99 US at Amazon.com]
If you like
the television game show, Wheel of Fortune, you may like
the CD-ROM version, Wheel of Fortune, but no guarantees. It
is rather slow-moving because it faithfully recreates the
show--you have to wait patiently as the heard-but-not-seen
opponents take their turn, and as the "fantasy prize"
sequences play out. In the end, you end up doing a lot less work
with word puzzles then with other programs. Also, there is no way
to control the computer opponents' skill level. However, if you
like the format, the CD-ROM will please with its abundance of
puzzles. [Buy Wheel of Fortune (Jewel Case)
at Amazon.com]
Online Word Games
One of the
best sites for kids to build their vocabulary and "play"
with words is found at Merriam Webster's Word
Central. There's a "daily buzzword" -- every day a
new word is spotlighted, and includes the word's meaning, an example
sentence using the word, and "Are you a Word Wiz?" multiple choice
question. Kids can check out the archive of daily buzzwords as
well. Verse Composer allows
children to finish a poem by, for example, choosing an adjective
that rhymes with food, a past-tense verb, etc. The results are
fun! Kids can check
out--and add to-- the Build-Your-Own Dictionary activity. They can
also encode
and decode secret messages and send their messages to friends.
Word games for
kids at Funbrain.com
include spell checking (editing), silly story building, word
searches (with the option to make your own), and more.
At Merriam
Webster online, simple but fun word games are offered. There's
a new one every day, and you can also access their archives of
games. One
has players completing quotations against a timer, another
requires matching synonyms, and yet another tests your knowledge of
word histories. There are more styles of games available, and most
are challenging and fun.
You'll find a
fun game of Boggler and Crossword Challenges at Wordplays.com,
as well as an anagram generator that is great fun (try putting in
your full name and see what phrases you can make out of the
letters). The anagram generator is just one of many excellent
puzzle solving tools.
Yahoo's
games include a number of single-player and multi-player word
games, including Anagrams, Cryptograms, Crosswords, and Word
Searches. You'll need to become a Yahoo member if you don't
already have a Yahoo ID. MSN.com
has a few easy to play word games, and you don't have to be a
member to play them. Jumble fans can play the game at Jumble.com,
but new puzzles only appear weekly.
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