Is Crosswordle Harder Than Wordle? In Theory, Yes
Difficulty is a hard thing to balance, especially in daily word games like Crosswordle and Wordle®. Make the game too easy, and it gets boring fast. Make the game too hard, and it becomes off-putting at a glance and frustrating.
That's why it's important to have a certain level of challenge to make the player feel the strain of adversity and let them experience the euphoria of defeating the odds.
Today, we compare Crosswordle against the word game giant, Wordle, and see how it can be more challenging and why.
Why knowing which is harder matters
It may not seem like a big deal to most people, but for players who want to get the best word gaming experience, knowing the difficulty level of what they're playing is crucial. In this case, learning why Crosswordle is harder than Wordle is beneficial for you because:
- It tells you which game you should play if you're looking for a better mental workout
- Helps you arrange your daily game sequence if you're ranking them by difficulty
- Allows you to share your online results more confidently within your social group
- Provides a good reason to invite other players who prefer a good challenge
Wordle is an NP-hard game
Wordle, based on this academic paper (which uses other Wordle studies already), is an NP-hard game. NP-hard stands for problems that are at least as hard as the hardest problems in the Nondeterministic Polynomial time class.
Nondeterministic Polynomial time (NP) class
NP is a rather complicated subject to get into here, so we'll break it down into the simplest yet accurate definitions. NP is the class, NP-hard and NP-complete are subclasses of it.
- NP - Problems (in this case, puzzles) that are hard to figure out with or without a computer, but easy to check.
- NP-hard - Problems that are at least as hard as the hardest problems. If you could solve an NP-hard puzzle quickly, you could solve all NP problems just as fast.
- NP-complete - A problem that is classified as an NP and is also NP-hard. All NP-complete puzzles are NP-hard, but not all NP-hard puzzles are NP-complete.
We'll spare you the complex computational jargon, but Wordle being an NP-hard game means that it can take a lot of work to solve perfectly, even for computers.
That means it's not difficult because it's complex, but rather, it becomes hard to complete because of the range of words you have to work through, the color-feedback system, as well as the six guesses you're given. Even though the dictionary Wordle uses is limited to five-letter words, in general, it will still take a significant amount of effort for a guesser or computer to complete the puzzle efficiently.
Luck plays a significant role in the initial guessing. Still, after that, it all boils down to computational logic, utilizing the color-feedback system, keeping track of eliminated letters and the possible five-letter words.
Keep in mind that there are some easy cases, like times when the range is made smaller with the right initial guess and the alphabet is tiny, where the puzzle is solved with the least number of guesses.
Why solving Crosswordle is theoretically harder than playing Wordle
Knowing now how difficult Wordle is, we can now argue that, in theory, Crosswordle is harder than Wordle due to the following reasons:
- Wordle only has you guessing for a single word that has five letters, while Crosswordle has you guessing for multiple words that must all fit together at the same time. And with this line of thinking, Crosswordle already contains Wordle in it, as its 7x7 grid contains rows and columns that can even exceed five letters.
- In Wordle, wrong positioning or guesses can still help in the path of getting the correct answer or final word, while in Crosswordle, wrong swaps can immediately lead to failure, even if all the letters are already there. This is because the main game mechanic of Crosswordle, where swapping letters around is the main game loop, can solve one word but break one or even more words in the process.
- Wordle has no concept of a perfect score, and success is gauged with the number of guesses it took to hit the word. Crosswordle, on the other hand, is systematically made to always have a perfect score per puzzle, creating a more consistent and challenging experience.
- The cross-checking aspect of Crosswordle adds a layer of depth and difficulty that Wordle doesn't have, which is also difficult for humans and computers alike. This becomes increasingly difficult as more words are in play, and Crosswordle can even reach up to eight words at times.
Is Crosswordle also an NP-hard game?
Technically, yes. But more accurately, Crosswordle is an NP-complete game. Remember the specifics: all NP-complete problems are NP-hard, but not all NP-hard problems are NP-complete.
Their technical identities also immediately mark their differences. Crosswordle is a Constraint Satisfaction Problem, as opposed to Wordle, which is a Search/Optimization with Feedback Problem.
Crosswordle already has the final answer in there, and you already have everything you need to solve it. All you have to do is make guesses that satisfy all the feedback rules, and the constraint here is the color-feedback system.
Wordle focuses on the search for the secret word using guesses and the color-feedback system. The only challenge here is finding the optimal sequence of guesses to minimize tries.
TL;DR, Crosswordle works by keeping constraints in mind and satisfying rules, while Wordle is all about optimized efficiency.
FAQ
Does Crosswordle require a bigger vocabulary?
Not at all! Most, if not all, words used in Crosswordle are common, and it's normal to find the same word in several Crosswordle puzzles within the span of a month. The challenge is recognizing them and arranging them all in the most efficient way.
Are 7-letter words the maximum in a Crosswordle puzzle?
Currently, yes. Every Crosswordle, daily puzzle or not, at this point in time is a 7x7 grid. But who knows, we might add bigger grids in the future, so stay tuned!
What’s a “good” Crosswordle solve time?
Between five to seven minutes is quite average. Below five minutes is above-average, and under three minutes is expert-level! If you want to improve your times and become a better Crosswordler, check these guides out:
- 7 General Steps in Solving Crosswordle
- 7 Tips to Up Your Crosswordle Skills
- In-Depth Guide to Getting Six Stars
Can beginner word game players still enjoy Crosswordle?
Of course! While Crosswordle is theoretically harder than Wordle, it is consistent in difficulty, unlike Wordle, which tends to fluctuate in complexity depending on the target word.
Enjoy playing Crosswordle and other games today!
We hope that our theoretical analysis of Crosswordle's higher difficulty was able to help you understand which word game is best for you. If you want to play the fun hybrid of Wordle and a crossword puzzle, we recommend trying out Crosswordle!
And if you're looking for more word puzzles or other Wordle-inspired games to play, check out our website to learn more.