NYTimes Apologizes For Triggering ‘Wordle’ Answer, Says It’s Unintentional

Despite the New York Times recently reporting a surge of “tens of millions” of new users with its acquisition of Wordle, it seems to have hit a snag with one of this week’s answers. 

In an apology note, the publication says that while the game was meant to delight players every day, the team taking over the project from original creator Josh Wardle has been facing challenges, such as an outdated answer that “seems closely connected to a major recent news event.” 

The word in question is “fetus,” the answer for one of the recent Wordle games, which has rubbed players the wrong way in light of the current debate surrounding Roe v. Wade. 

The company says that the answer was loaded into the game last year, and when the team discovered it was one of the answers this week, it tried to switch it for as many users as possible, but some displays still fell through the cracks. 

While those who refreshed their browsers would have received the replacement word, others who were still playing on the old version of Wordle had “fetus” as the correct response.

“We’re now busy revamping Wordle’s technology so that everyone always receives the same word. We are committed to ensuring that tens of millions of people have a gratifying and consistent experience, every day,” says the newspaper. 

[via Engadget and New York Times, cover image via Wachiwit | Dreamstime.com]