Wordle is a game that has taken the world, and most likely your Twitter feed, by storm. The word-guessing game has spawned many clones with a variety of different themes. Now, thanks to software developer Sergio “Fireblend” Esquivel, there is a Pokémon-themed version of the game called Squirdle that fans of the pocket monsters can enjoy.
Wordle is a puzzle game with a simple concept: Guess a five-letter word in six tries. The Squirdle version is similar, but instead tasks players with guessing the name of a Pokémon in eight tries.
My contribution to the wordle-like genre: Squirdle, a Pokémon guessing game! Test your Pokedex knowledge (and luck) at https://t.co/Vv3ZINEZK6 🙌
🔽🟥🟥🔽🔽
🟩🟥🟩🔽🔽
🟩🟩🟩🔼🔼
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
— Sergio (@fireblend) January 11, 2022
In Squirdle, players start by guessing a Pokémon name. The game spits out a line of clues to help players figure out the daily Pokémon. It’ll tell them if it’s the right generation and type, denoting a correct guess with a green square. It also tells players if the guessed monster is taller and heavier than the actual one.
The Wordle clone shows some love to fans of classic Pokémon who strayed from the series after the first generation. Fireblend included a generation one-only mode that exclusively features names of Pokémon from Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow. It’s perfect for those who don’t want to have to remember all 898 creatures (and counting).
Squirdle picked an amazing time to come into existence. The new mainline Pokémon games, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl were released two months ago, and the highly anticipated spinoff game Pokémon Legends: Arceus is right around the corner, with a January 28 launch date.
You can check out Squirdle and start making your daily Pokémon guesses by going to Fireblend’s website. If his Twitter activities with users of the game are anything to go by, he’ll be updating the game and hopefully introduce even more generation-specific modes.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.