Hunch
Wordle meets Mastermind: you learn how many letters are right, never which.
Every day: A daily challenge of five-letter words, the same for every player, solved Mastermind style: each guess only tells you how many letters are in the right place and how many are elsewhere in the word, not which ones. New puzzle: Once a day; the daily challenge is shared by all players.
Hunch is a daily five-letter word game with Mastermind feedback. After each guess you see a count of letters in the right place and a count of letters in the word but misplaced, never which ones, so every puzzle is a chain of deductions. Daily modes include Classic and a three-word Cascade, and you can mark letters as you rule them in or out.
About Hunch
Hunch is a daily word game that swaps Wordle's coloured letters for Mastermind's counts, made by Bennette Sebastian. The answer is a five-letter word, but after each guess you are not told which letters are right: you are told only how many letters sit in the right place and how many are in the word but in the wrong place. Working out which letters those are is the whole puzzle, which is why it has a reputation as a harder, more deductive solve.
Two numbers sit beside each guess: one for letters in the correct position and one for letters that are in the answer but misplaced. From a run of guesses you cross-reference these totals to pin down letters and positions. The game lets you mark letters on the keyboard as ruled in or out to keep track, since you are holding more in your head than in a normal Wordle.
There are a few daily modes. Classic is the single-word puzzle; Cascade links three words together for a longer chain of deductions. A tutorial walks you through reading the numbers, and difficulty settings change how hard the daily plays. The daily puzzle is the same for everyone, and progress is kept in your browser.
It is free. It suits players who have outgrown Wordle and want a sterner logic puzzle where feedback hides as much as it reveals.
How to play Hunch
- Type a five-letter word and submit it as your guess.
- Read the two numbers beside it: one counts letters in the right place, the other counts letters that are in the word but misplaced.
- You are not told which letters, so compare the totals across your guesses to deduce them.
- Mark letters on the keyboard as ruled in or out to keep track.
- Narrow down the answer, and try Cascade for a three-word chain when you want more.
Tips
- Open with words that share letters so a changing count tells you exactly which letter moved.
- Use the keyboard marks: with only numbers as feedback, a written note of what you have ruled out saves re-deducing it.
- Change one letter at a time between guesses when you are closing in, so each new count is easy to attribute.
- Start with the tutorial if the numbers are unfamiliar; reading them well is most of the game.
Questions
How is this different from Wordle?
You get counts, not colours. After each guess you learn how many letters are in the right place and how many are misplaced, but never which ones, so you have to deduce the letters yourself.
What do the two numbers mean?
One is the number of letters in the correct position; the other is the number of letters that are in the word but in the wrong position.
What modes are there?
A Classic single-word daily and a Cascade mode that links three words, plus a tutorial and difficulty settings.
Is the puzzle the same for everyone?
Yes. There is a shared daily challenge, and progress is kept in your browser.
Does it cost anything?
No. Hunch is free to play in the browser.
Games like Hunch
Wordle
The five-letter daily this reworks, with counts in place of coloured letters
Don't Wordle
Another deduction-heavy take on the Wordle board
Cryptle
A six-letter deduction puzzle with limited feedback, like a combination lock
Alphalock
Crack the day's four-letter word from Mastermind-style counts, in ten guesses.
Blunderwall
Pick the secret word out of a wall of 16 in four tries.
Baddle
Deduce balanced battles of letters in a daily run through ancient ruins.
Crowdpleaser Words
Find a word that pleases seven judges whose rules you have to work out.
Glyph
All the letters of a word, stacked into one shape. Decode it.