If you’re an experienced Scrabble GO player but haven’t yet played Scrabble on PlayScrabble.com, take heart – it’s still the same game you know and love.
But there are some differences between the two platforms that you’ll want to keep in mind as you dive into Scrabble games on PlayScrabble.com.
TIMERS
The first difference you’ll notice right away is that the games on PlayScrabble.com are timed. You can choose between time settings and play a game with the duration of your choice.
Scrabble GO games are asynchronous, meaning they can take place with players playing at their own pace at different times of the day. Scrabble GO does offer Live PVP to allow for a real-time experience, but PlayScrabble.com is focused much more on the real-time version of Scrabble play.
When you notice your timer getting low, do your best to hurry and make your moves quickly. If you use up all your time, that’s it! Your opponent will be the winner, no matter what the score of the game is at the time.
RATINGS
In Scrabble GO, you’ll notice that in your profile, you have a Scrabble Score that measures your activity in the app. You also have an Average Word Score that can be helpful to see how you stack up with your opponents.
On PlayScrabble.com, you’ll also have a numerical rating that tracks your performance over time. You can click on your name in-game to see this rating, as well as your average game score and average word score that you’re familiar with from Scrabble GO.
Remember, in Scrabble, there’s an element of luck that’s out of your control. Sometimes you’ll get a good run of the tiles and your rating will spike, and other times you’ll hit a rough patch and that number will drop. Over the long haul, you’ll get a good feeling for your rating level, and hopefully, as you continue to play, you’ll see that rating improve!
PHONIES
In Scrabble GO, if you attempt to play a word that isn’t in the dictionary, you’ll be given back your tiles and the game will ask you to try again. This setting is known as “void challenge” because all the words that end up being played are valid words. As a result, in these games, there’s no reason to include the ability to challenge, so the option to challenge is left “void.”
On PlayScrabble.com, void challenge is available for those who prefer it, but you’ll also be able to play with options that allow you to play words that aren’t in the dictionary, forcing your opponent to challenge them. You can also challenge words your opponents play that you don’t recognize. Some players really enjoy the cat-and-mouse game that bluffing adds to Scrabble. This is also known as playing a “phoney.”
Double challenge is particularly painful. If you challenge your opponent’s word, and it ends up being valid, you’ll lose your next turn, and your opponent will get a second play! However, if you’re right, and their play isn’t in the dictionary, they’ll be the ones to lose their turn. High risk, high reward!
Other challenge rules allow you to challenge with slightly less risk. For example, 5 point challenge allows you to challenge a word, knowing that if it’s in the dictionary, your opponent will gain 5 extra points. However, if you’re right, and their play is invalid, they’ll still lose their turn, just as they would in double challenge. It gives you much more incentive to challenge any word you’re not certain of.
TILE BAG
The tile bag is a really useful feature in Scrabble GO, accessible via the menu in the lower right corner of the screen. Just tap the bag with the number on it to bring up the tiles that haven’t been played yet. The app keeps track of this for you as the game proceeds, and when there are no tiles left to draw, the tiles you see on that screen are the tiles your opponent holds on their rack.
On PlayScrabble.com, this information is even more accessible. The tile bag is available to you at all times on the upper right side of your screen. As the game progresses, make sure you’re taking a look at the information provided there! If there are many more consonants left than vowels, do your best to hang on to the vowels on your rack. If it’s the reverse, with a boatload of vowels remaining, make sure you hang on to a consonant or two. And if there are lots of blanks, esses, and high-scoring tiles left to be played, consider playing more tiles than you usually would to try and get them.
TURN HISTORY
Just like the tile bag, the turn history is available in Scrabble GO as well. First, access the tile bag as described above, and then toggle the display from Tile Bag to Turn History. Tapping any of the words you see will bring up their definition.
On PlayScrabble.com, this information is also available on-screen to you at all times. And just like on your phone, you can click on any word to display its definition. Learning new words is a lot of fun!
The turn history window shares space with your chat window, so make sure to toggle the turn history on if you want to see all of the words that have been played. The color-coding of the letters will show you which bonus squares you used on that move.
OTHER FEATURES
On PlayScrabble.com, you won’t find any boosters, collectible tiles, or minigames. These features are part of the reason I enjoy Scrabble GO so much. Every day, there are new events, tiles, and themed opponents to play.
But if you’re someone who just wants to play classic Scrabble without all the bells and whistles, PlayScrabble.com is for you.
On the other hand, PlayScrabble.com is chock full of other content for you to enjoy. If you’re reading this article, you probably know that you can find articles just like this one about all sorts of Scrabble topics on the playscrabble.com Blog. There’s a Scrabble forum to chat about the game with your fellow players. Sometime soon, there will be a “Watch Live” tab where you can watch and interact with other Scrabble players on live streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube.
Between Scrabble GO and PlayScrabble.com, whether you only have a few minutes to play a couple of moves or you’re ready to play several games in one sitting, there are now two great options to play Scrabble. Hopefully, this article will help you get the most out of Scrabble Web!