Favorite iPhone apps: Words With Friends

I've managed to reference my favorite iPhone game, Words With Friends, plenty, but I wanted to give it it's proper due. First, if you enjoy Scrabble, you're going to love Words With Friends. But instead of sitting at a board for an evening, you're wirelessly playing with someone through your smartphone for a few days (unless both of you are unemployed or have some serious downtime). Each has a set of tiles like Scrabble, and you lay down a word (yes, like Scrabble) and submit it. Then you just wait for your friend to play his or her word.  You can also use a turn to swap tiles or skip a turn straight up if you have nothing (usually done at the end).  It's at a go-at-your-own pace feel, but f you let a number of days (9? 12?) go by without making a move, it'll forcibly resign you.  But overall it's a fairly relaxed pace unless you're addicted to making words. That's where having multiple games going fills that need. Color me addicted.

Second, WWF lets you "try" words: you can put down some letters and if it's a word you'll see it "sending" it or if not, it'll tell you that's it not an "acceptable" word and not let you submit the word. I've learned some surprising acceptable words like "fiz" and "axon" this way. And it negates the need for challenges and dictionaries.  The "dictionary" it uses won't allow words that may be deemed objectionable and I have been frustrated that it took another player's "joyed" but not my "cryer".  Hello, WWF, ever heard of a Town Cryer?!

Finally, it's free!  The downside is you'll see an ad every time you play. Truthfully, given how many games I have going on at once, it was so worth the 99 cents (or $1.99?) at the time to get rid of the ads that sandwiched my moves.

Similar to Scrabble, it slays me when I have a great word and nowhere to put it:

Oh, Ddub..., I'll get you on the rematch.

E-mail me if you want to play me.  I'll be gentle.  At first.