60
seconds
A grid of letters, a list that only tells you how long each word is, and a three minute clock. Read the grid, spot a word, and type it to circle it in colour.
Each puzzle is a square grid with eight to twelve words hidden in straight lines. On Standard they run left to right, top to bottom and diagonally. On Advanced they can also run backwards. The word list sits beside the grid on a computer and under it on a phone.
Start typing and the grid answers straight away. One letter marks every cell with that letter. Two letters narrow it to the lines that spell them, and the line belonging to a word on the list glows brighter than the rest. If a letter matches nothing in the grid it flashes red and is not added, so you never end up typing into a dead end. Finish a word and a rounded capsule is drawn over it, the list entry is struck through and you get 10 more seconds.
The list never gives the words away. Each entry is a row of blanks, one for every letter, so all you know is how long the word is. You find it the way you would on paper, by reading the grid, and only then type it. Three letters in, the line glows brighter if you are on one of the hidden words, which tells you to keep going. Typing letters that match nothing counts as a miss, so guessing costs you.
Grids are full of accidental words. If you spot a real word of four letters or more in a straight line that is not on the list, type it and press Space. It is circled with a dashed line and scores as a bonus with 5 extra seconds. The panel tells you how many bonus words are still hiding in the current grid.
Word Search is the one game here that is not about finger speed. It trains how quickly you recognise a word in a mess of letters, which is the same skill that lets fast typists read ahead of their hands. Because the list never tells you what to look for, you have to read the grid properly instead of hunting for a word you already know. The grid only accepts letters that can continue a line, so a wrong guess costs you a moment and a miss on your accuracy rather than a string of corrections.
Yes. The list only shows how many letters each word has, so you have to spot it in the grid first. That is the point: it trains how fast you read and recognise words, not how fast you copy them.
Any real word of four letters or more in the game's word list that reads in a straight line in the grid and is not on the puzzle list. Type it and press Space or Enter to claim it.
Grids start larger, every puzzle has more words, words also run backwards in every direction and the grid is seeded with false starts.
The clock starts at three minutes. Every listed word adds 10 seconds and every bonus word 5, so a quick player can keep going for several puzzles.