NYT’s Wordle to become a TV game show

The New York Times is confident that the Wordle phenomenon has more life left in it. In an exciting announcement made on Monday, the Times revealed plans to transform the wildly popular mobile word game into a game show set to air on NBC. Savannah Guthrie, a familiar face from the "Today" show, will host this new venture, with production support from both The Times and late-night host Jimmy Fallon. During the 8:00 AM segment of the "Today" show, Guthrie and Fallon unveiled that the game show has been in development for over two and a half years. Set to premiere next year, the show promises to be "fast-paced" and enjoyable for families—quite a contrast to the slower-paced gameplay of the mobile version, which encourages players to ponder their word choices carefully. This marks a significant milestone for The New York Times, as it represents the first collaboration with a television network for an entertainment-focused program. This move aligns with the media company’s ongoing strategy to bolster its digital subscription services amid a decline in print revenue. Wordle, originally crafted by Brooklyn software engineer Josh Wardle, first gained popularity as an online word puzzle game when it launched in October 2021. Its acquisition by The New York Times in January 2022 brought in a surge of new users, adding "tens of millions" to its gaming platform. NYT Games reported that users engaged with over 11 billion puzzles across its various games in the previous year, a notable increase from 8 billion in 2020. As NBC prepares to film episodes this summer, they are actively seeking contestants for the show.