Jangle Makes Anagrams Social
Jangle (Free) by Retired Astronaut Collective is a great social word game. Players are given nine random letters and they have a short amount of time to create a word from them, just like the classic anagram puzzles in newspapers. Like Words With Friends, Jangle capitalizes on the social aspect of word games, and connects users through Facebook or its own online network of players.
Players play a game with five rounds against their opponent. Each round has nine new letters and players have a limited time to find a word from those. Both players receive the same letters for every round. A timer is shown in the middle of the screen that shows how much time is left in the round. Once players have finished their word they can click done, and if their opponent is also finished the round ends early.
The first round is the most simple; all the letters are worth one point and there are no bonus spaces. It is also the shortest round. Rounds two through four have letters worth two/three points and bonus spaces (just like scrabble). The last round has a special challenge; there is a nine-letter mystery word as well as two/three point letters and bonus spaces. If you guess the mystery word correctly you get all the points from the last round (including your those from your opponent’s word) and your opponent gets no points. To help you guess the mystery word, the last round is the longest.
At the end of each round the two words spelled and their point values are displayed. Points are added and displayed under the name and icon of each player. At the end of the game, an overview screen is shown with all the words played during the game, and the mystery word to the last round. The winner gets a thumbs up, confetti thrown over the screen, and points added to their rating. Losers receive a thumbs down, and points are deducted from their rating (as if losing wasn’t bad enough).
Most adults and teenagers have seen anagrams before, so Jangle is easy for most people to pick up. Games are short and sweet, usually about three minutes in length.
Although Jangle is initially a free app, there is a limit to the number of games that can be played for free. The number of games left is displayed in the bottom right of your iDevice’s screen. If you have less than five games remaining, a game is added every seven minutes. Or you can purchase additional games, 99 for $0.99. You can also earn extra games by logging in through Facebook. Jangle has its own world leaderboards, but only users signed into Facebook are included.
Overall, Jangle is a fun word game for anyone over 10. I highly recommend it for its simplicity and stimulating gameplay. Jangle is sure to be an App Store hit.
