Mattel is launching a new collaborative, team-building version of Scrabble designed to be less “intimidating” to young people, even accessible 8-year-olds.

The new board refresh was inspired the rise in popularity of the online word games such as Wordle in which you simply guess a new five-letter word each day.

Young millennials and gen z make up a good number of the game’s users, implying that younger people are still very much interested in word puzzles, they just enjoy them in a shorter format and in a less serious, more sociable manner.

Brett Smitheram, the current UK number one and 2016 World Scrabble Champion, said: “The game speaks to a trend in younger people who want to avoid competitive games, instead favouring teamwork and collaboration working towards a fun goal together.”

The collaborative version of Scrabble now comes with the traditional game. Credit: Mattel.

How do you play a collaborative version of Scrabble?

“Scrabble Together” will feature a double-side board. On one side the original game will be included, while on the flip-side a collaborative team player version of Scrabble has been introduced. The new side will also include helper cards, use a simpler scoring system, set small challenges aiming toward a singular goal, and be quicker to play.

The winner is the player who completes 20 challenges. The loser is whoever if they have used up all their helper cards and hasn’t completed a goal.

Ray Adler, vice-president and head of games at Mattel, said: “Scrabble has truly stood the test of time as one of the most popular board games in history, and we want to ensure the game continues to be inclusive for all players.

“For anyone who’s ever thought, ‘word games aren’t for me’, or felt a little intimidated by the Classic game, Scrabble Together Mode is an ideal option.

“Thanks to its exciting new co-operative and dynamic gameplay, it’s more accessible and brings people together.”

“Scrabble Together” is on the flip-side of the traditional board. Credit: Mattel.

Change is good?

As you can imagine, many seasoned scrabble players are a little upset by the news and fearing the change. However, “on the flip-side” many more scrabble fans have accurately pointed out that the traditional game remains unchanged and readily available to anyone who continues to purchase Scrabble.

This new collaborative version of Scrabble doesn’t remove anything, only makes additions with accessibility and inclusivity in mind, while also just offering a new way to play. For some people, team games are just more fun and Scrabble is tapping into that market.

Who knows – maybe there will be less family fall-outs on board game night!

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