This article discusses the New York Times’ new online word puzzle game, Connections: Sports Edition, providing hints and solutions for the January 20, 2025, puzzle. The game, currently in beta, challenges players to connect four groups of four words each based on a shared theme. The article outlines the game’s premise, offers strategic hints for solving the daily puzzle, and finally reveals the answers for that day’s edition.
The Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for January 20, 2025, presented four categories of words, each with its own connecting theme. The yellow group, described as the easiest, revolved around the concept of a downturn, featuring words like “decline,” “plunge,” “skid,” and “slump.” The green group focused on surfing terminology, including words like “barrel,” “crest,” “swell,” and “wave.” The blue group centered on New York colleges, listing “Colgate,” “Columbia,” “St. John’s,” and “Syracuse.” Finally, the purple group, often considered the most challenging, required players to identify homophones of NBA player names, namely “Barns” (Barnes), “Connect” (Connaughton), “Heart” (Hart), and “Hero” (Hiero).
The article provides hints before revealing the answers, offering players a chance to solve the puzzle independently. The hints range from straightforward descriptions, such as “Not going up” for the yellow group, to more cryptic clues like “Sounds like a hoopster” for the purple group. This tiered approach allows players to utilize the hints strategically, seeking assistance only when needed. The author also notes the general difficulty progression, with yellow being the easiest and purple often posing the greatest challenge.
The structure of the Connections: Sports Edition gameplay is highlighted. Players are presented with sixteen words and tasked with grouping them into four sets of four, each unified by a common theme. The challenge lies in deciphering these themes, which can range from simple concepts to more obscure connections. The article implies a strategic element, suggesting that successfully solving the first three categories can often indirectly reveal the theme of the final, more challenging purple group.
Beyond the specifics of the January 20th puzzle, the article provides broader context about the game itself. Connections: Sports Edition is currently in its beta phase, meaning it is being tested by the New York Times to gauge its popularity before a potential permanent integration into their Games app. Currently free to play, the game’s future availability remains uncertain, dependent on its reception during this testing period. This context underscores the novelty of the game and encourages user engagement during its trial run.
The article serves as both a guide and a record of the January 20, 2025, Connections: Sports Edition puzzle. It walks readers through the solutions, offering explanations for each category’s theme. This documentation becomes valuable for players seeking confirmation of their answers or assistance with challenging groupings. It also serves as an archive of past puzzles, potentially useful for analyzing recurring themes or difficulty levels. Furthermore, the article subtly promotes the game by showcasing its gameplay and challenging nature, encouraging readers to try it themselves. The inclusion of the beta status further incentivizes participation, framing it as an opportunity to influence the game’s future.
In essence, the article provides a comprehensive breakdown of the January 20, 2025, Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, offering hints, answers, and strategic insights alongside broader context about the game’s beta status and potential future. It caters to both active players seeking assistance and curious readers interested in learning more about this new word puzzle offering from the New York Times. The strategic presentation of hints allows for varying levels of engagement, while the inclusion of the answers provides closure and confirmation for those who choose to view them. The article effectively combines game analysis with promotional elements, encouraging wider participation during the game’s beta phase.
