Apple Inc. has taken down numerous Wordle games from its App Store following user confusion with another word-play title popularized by celebrities like Jimmy Fallon. As of Wednesday, the sole remaining product with that title on the App Store seems to be Wordle!, a time-based game developed by Steven Cravotta over five years ago. Apple’s action was confirmed to Bloomberg.
In recent weeks, Wordle games gained significant popularity on the App Store, driven by a specific version embraced by entertainers. Created in October by former Reddit software engineer Josh Wardle, this version is accessible once a day on his website and does not have a dedicated mobile app.
Despite this, similarly named games have surged in downloads on the App Store. Cravotta’s Wordle! experienced a substantial increase, with downloads reaching nearly 40,000 in the week of Jan. 1, marking an 850% rise from the previous week. According to App Annie, a mobile data and analytics firm, it achieved top 10 rankings among all word games in seven countries and held the No. 1 position among word games in Ireland as of Jan. 8. Currently, Wordle! holds the No. 4 spot among word games in the US App Store.
Likewise, the iOS launch of What Word – Wordle last week garnered almost 20,000 worldwide downloads in the week of Jan. 1. It secured a place in the top 10 among all word games in 14 countries on iOS and claimed the No. 1 spot among word games in the U.K., Iceland, and the Netherlands as of Jan. 8, according to App Annie. However, it appears that this game is no longer available on the U.S. App Store.
