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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Now Time to Play | Now Time to Play |
| (25 days later) | |
| When you open Connections — a new Times game — you often need to fight your initial instincts. It’s a game in which a little patience can go a long way. | When you open Connections — a new Times game — you often need to fight your initial instincts. It’s a game in which a little patience can go a long way. |
| We’re devoting today’s newsletter to an explanation of Connections because we frequently hear from Morning readers who tell us that they enjoy quick daily games and are eager to try new ones. We now have one for you to consider. | We’re devoting today’s newsletter to an explanation of Connections because we frequently hear from Morning readers who tell us that they enjoy quick daily games and are eager to try new ones. We now have one for you to consider. |
| Each day’s Connections puzzle shows 16 terms — as in the example above, published last week — and your job is to split the 16 into four sets of four. Each set of four is part of a recognizable category of objects, descriptions, phrases or something else. Imagine, say, four colors or four exclamations of joy. If you have played the board game Codenames, this idea will be familiar. | Each day’s Connections puzzle shows 16 terms — as in the example above, published last week — and your job is to split the 16 into four sets of four. Each set of four is part of a recognizable category of objects, descriptions, phrases or something else. Imagine, say, four colors or four exclamations of joy. If you have played the board game Codenames, this idea will be familiar. |
| But Connections often comes with a twist, and the puzzle above is a good example. It includes six state names, not four: | But Connections often comes with a twist, and the puzzle above is a good example. It includes six state names, not four: |
| How are you supposed to decide which four to put in a “states” category and which two belong in a different category? | |
| Answering that question is a big part of the game’s challenge and fun. On most days, you will notice one obvious potential category that includes more than four items, like the state names in this puzzle. Your job is then to figure out which of those items can also fit into a different category. Each day’s puzzle has only one possible solution. |