SinceWordledebuted in November of last year, the web-based daily word game has become an international sensation on the internet. The simplicity of the daily word puzzles has given the game widespread appeal for both young and old fans and the game’s popularity has been recognized by some of the biggest publications in the world withThe New York Timespurchasing the gamefor a reportedly “seven-figure” deal. Now, fans are noticing a similarity between the word game and a particular puzzle from a classic piece of detective literature.
After releasing in relative obscurity late in 2021,Wordleskyrocketed to popularity early in the year after the game debuted the ability to share results from the daily puzzles on social media. Since the sharing feature was introduced, the game has seen a significant spike in popularity alongside plenty of spinoff games from different developers offering their own unique take on the rudimentary word game. The game’s rotating daily puzzles give fans reason to keep playing the game consistently and, now,Wordle’s word puzzles have been likened to a curious puzzle in the classic detective novel,The Return of Sherlock Holmes.
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The puzzle from the 1905 novel from legendary Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle features the iconic Sherlock Holmes solving a word puzzle where different symbols of what appears to be a human body are associated with letters of the alphabet. The methodology by Holmes plays out similarly to what players go throughwhen solving aWordlepuzzlewith Holmes determining that a certain symbol stands for the letter “E” and tying the other symbols to different letters, using a translation provided by a Mr. Hilton Cubitt to ultimately form the word “never.”
The massive popularity ofWordlehas led to a number of clones popping up with each different version of the game taking its own spin on the popular word game. Games likeOctordleandQuardlechallenge players with solving multiple words at the same time through multiple miniWordle-like puzzles while some versions of the game likethe inappropriateLewdleandAbsurdlelook to change up the pool of words for players to guess from.
Wordle’s massive success has sent shockwaves throughout the internet and the world at large with the simple game becoming one of the hottest trends on the internet. Alongside the previously mentioned acquisition ofWordlebyThe New York Times, the game’s popularity has also made its way intoGoogle Search Trends thanks toWordleplayerssearching up potential words to try out for each day’s puzzle. The game’s simplicity has helped it to catch fire and the presence of the game on social media will ensure it retains that popularity into the future.
