WordZap is a puzzle video game designed by Michael F.C. Crick, son of scientist Francis Crick. In 1991, it was included with Volume 3 of the Microsoft Entertainment Pack and was later released by Jaleco for the Game Boy in 1992. An updated version for newer editions of Microsoft Windows is available on the game's official website as shareware. The game has been compared with Scrabble and Boggle; in WordZap, players race to make words proper English words to fill their rack of words, but when one player makes a word already found by the other player, the word is 'zapped' from both players' racks. Each round ends when either one player fills the word rack, or time runs out without either player being able to make another word.
In the Game Boy version, players can choose between 3, 4, or 5 letter words. They can also enable or disable hints, allow or disallow plural forms of words and even choose the level of vocabulary used in the game. Each round has a different theme attached to it (e.g., 'Any Letter'). Players have a limited time to solve each round before it ends. They also have a choice between the conventional 'WordZap' mode and the 'WordHai' mode; which permits players to create 3-letter words from a set of 21 tiles. Removing a tile from the screen requires using it; opening up options for building new words.
There is a built-in dictionary using a complete list of ten thousand English language words. Two players can compete against other using a Game Link. Only the 'WordZap' mode is available for two-player play. All types of skill levels are accommodated in this game from novice players to experts.
More details about this game can be found on
Wikipedia.org.
Find digital download of this game on
GOG
or
Steam.
Videogame Console:
This version of Word Zap was designed for the Game Boy console, which was an 8-bit handheld video game console manufactured
by Nintendo in the years 1989 - 2003. It was the first ever handheld video game console with exchangeable game cartridges, but it only supported black and
white screen. The Game Boy console has been extremely commercially successful and has sold more than 118 million units (including its successors Game
Boy Pocket and Color). Its unit price on US market was $ 90. More information about the Game Boy console can be found
here.
Recommended Game Controllers:
You can control this game easily by using the keyboard of your PC (see the table next to the game). However, for maximum gaming enjoyment, we strongly recommend using a USB gamepad that you simply plug into the USB port of your computer. If you do not have a gamepad, buy a suitable USB controller on Amazon or AliExpress or in some of your favorite online stores.
Available online emulators:
6 different online emulators are available for Word Zap. These emulators differ not only in the technology they use to emulate old games, but also in support of various game controllers, multiplayer mode, mobile phone touchscreen, emulation speed, absence or presence of embedded ads and in many other parameters. For
maximum gaming enjoyment, it's important to choose the right emulator, because on each PC and in different Internet browsers, the individual emulators behave differently. The basic
features of each emulator available for this game Word Zap are summarized in the following table:
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