Oh My Word

★★★★★ I used to own a Windows Phone (so maybe my taste isn't great), and the one game I would always play -internet connection permitting-was a simple multiplayer word game called Ornament. It was an Xbox Live exclusive, so when I finally made the switch to android, I didn't expect I'd find a game to scratch the Ornament itch. In all the ways that matter, I've found Ornament again in the form of Oh My Word: and in some crucial aspects, Zydeco's take on grid based word puzzles improves on the formula. If you've not played either game, I'll just summarize the concept. You're presented with a grid of letters (4x4 in Ornament and 5x5 in Oh My Word), and you're asked to give words in the alphabet soup. There's a timer that introduces a sense of urgency into the mix, and you can't use the same letter twice (positionally, that is. if you find the same letter twice you can). They are some differences. Ornament restricts combinations to contiguous and non-intersecting lines, whereas this game lets you pick words from where ever in the grid. In the former, you have the same 16 letters for the whole game, whereas the latter removes used words and replaces them randomly. There are changes are apples and oranges to me, there is one significant difference. Oh My Word has a scoreboard, but no direct multiplayer mechanic. Ornament is a multiplayer only experience. Every player in Ornament is on the same server, given the same words and allotted the same time to play. There's a brief score board where it shows things like the longest possible word, and who got the most points, and then it resets the board and everyone posts another round. While it's cool, it's also being the biggest drawback. I could never play it: I didn't have 4g to connect to the internet. I only had Wi-Fi, limiting where I was able to play my favorite mobile game. Refreshingly, Oh My Word does away with always online. There's a scoreboard, which I'm given to understand syncs up when your phone can connect to the internet. I won't be looking at it, though. I once made the mistake of looking at a 1st place Ornament player. How I stack up here to the average player isn't a question I (or my ego) wants to be answered. So to summarize Oh My Word without comparing it to other games, I guess I can only say that this is game that's more fun and addicting than the concept sounds. It's endlessly repayable, challenging, and non-committal. I highly recommend this entertaining little free to play word puzzle game.