#NEW YORK TIMES WIRECUTTER MOVES PAYWALL FREE#
Their ‘The Mini’ crossword is free to play for everyone. The New York Times has taken a layered approach to its puzzles in order to entice players. “In addition to all the journalism we provide, we were drawn to the idea of giving people a moment of whimsy,” explained Executive Editor Adrienne LaFrance. This one gets a little bigger and more challenging as the week goes on. The Atlantic launched its mini daily crossword puzzle in October 2018, ahead of the publisher’s wider digital subscription drive. “You can put 10 crosswords side by side, and you can clearly pick out the one that Vulture published, because it feels like us.” “There’s a clarity and simplicity to making it a pop culture puzzle that everybody can immediately understand,” Janowitz added. But it also sits comfortably alongside the flagship New York crossword.Īs the biggest site in the magazine’s network, Vulture made the most sense to house the new puzzle. The 10×10 format is a relatively digestible puzzle that can typically be solved in under six minutes. But eventually we realized that what made the most sense was to start with something we already had,”said Vulture Editor Neil Janowitz. The 10×10 puzzle, housed under the Vulture brand, is entirely focused on entertainment and pop-culture. Sensing an opportunity with a new wave of daily puzzle enthusiasts, New York Magazine announced a new crossword in January – with a twist. “We have a lot of people who are coming to read the news, and then the games are the ‘dessert’ at the end of the meal.” “We see it as a great diversion from the news, when the news can often be quite rough,” he said. Jonathan Knight, The New York Times’ General Manager of Games, sees a correlation between daily engagement with the games and long term retention. As the pressure to gain and retain subscribers grows, publishers are using puzzles not just to build habit, but to open a two-way relationship with readers – and their friends. The subscription behemoth isn’t the only publisher looking to level up in games. However, it also reinforced the NYT’s ambition to be the destination for people spending time online. It serves as a useful reminder of the value of simplicity in creating a successful game. Last month’s Wordle acquisition by The New York Times hit headlines inside and outside the media world.
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