Expanded Quick Play Difficulties
We’re excited to announce something that’s been in the works for a while: our Quick Play mode now has five difficulty levels instead of three! We’ve also adjusted how the game works to better match players’ skills—from early readers to expert wordsmiths.
Why the change?
Our previous difficulty levels—Easy, Medium, and Hard—were too broad. “Easy” could range from words like cat to convention, leading to unpredictable spikes in difficulty. With only three categories, there were bound to be words that felt either too simple or too challenging.
By adding more levels, we’ve created a smoother progression with fewer surprises. Here’s how the new lineup looks:
- Junior: Simple words with picture clues, designed for new readers still building basic word recognition
- Basic: Common words with multiple-choice questions, ideal for developing reading and comprehension skills
- Intermediate: More challenging words that test typing and spelling skills
- Advanced: Complex terms to level up vocabulary skills
- Expert: Rare and sophisticated words for vocabulary masters
Making Knoword more accessible to young learners
In conversations with early-grade teachers, we learned that Knoword seemed like a great tool for teaching literacy—but the Quick Play mode was too challenging for emerging readers.
The challenges we heard about:
- Reading-heavy definitions: Young learners had to read long, complex definitions before guessing, making the game tough for students still mastering basic reading.
- Typing required: Most students in grades 1-4 aren’t proficient typists, so gameplay felt slow and frustrating.
To address this, we did something different for our lower difficulty levels:
- Junior: Players see a word and choose the matching picture from three options. It’s a fun, visual way to build word recognition.
- Basic: Players read a simple definition and pick the correct word from three multiple-choice options.
Rewriting definitions for every level
That’s right! We rewrote every word definition across all levels. The dictionary-style definitions we used before were often too advanced, even when the words themselves were easy.
Take this old definition of cat:
Cat (noun): A small domesticated carnivorous mammal with soft fur, a short snout, and retractable claws.
While cat is a common word that’s easy to spell, terms like “domesticated,” “carnivorous,” and “retractable” aren’t exactly beginner-friendly.
So, we simplified definitions across the board, focusing on clarity and readability—especially for Junior and Basic difficulties. Now, definitions are easier to understand and more fun to learn.
By expanding our difficulty levels, simplifying definitions, and introducing new game modes, we’ve worked to make Knoword more accessible and fun. We hope these updates create a better, more tailored Quick Play experience for learners of all levels. A huge thanks to the teachers and students whose feedback helped shape these changes—we couldn’t have done it without you.
Ready to play? Try it out for yourself!