 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Scramble With Friends
- iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad
- Price: $.99
- Category: Puzzle Games
Common Sense Media says
Addictive word game safer to play with your own friends.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that Scramble With Friends is a word puzzle game in the tradition of Boggle. Players must find words from a collection of 16 onscreen letters; some iffy words are accepted in the game. You can play against random opponents, and messaging between two players is unmoderated. You can also play against Facebook friends, Twitter followers, or people in your contacts. The game comes in both a free and paid version. The paid version replenishes tokens, which are required for games and bonuses, much quicker.
What kids can learn
Kids can learn to process chaotic information, finding words in a series of 16 random letters as they race through rounds in Scramble With Friends. The app can also help improve spelling and build vocabulary, but since the words are completely out of context and you can't look up meanings in the app, the app's ability to help build vocab is limited. Kids also engage in social activity via the "With Friends" aspect of the app -- they can connect with Facebook friends and other contacts to play. Scramble With Friends is fast-paced fun with lots of spelling practice, a dash of vocab, and plenty of socializing.
Subjects
- Arts
- Hobbiesboard games
- Language & Readingletter or word recognition, reading, vocabulary
- Math
- Science
- Social Studies
Skills
- Collaboration
- Communication
- Creativitydeveloping novel solutions
- Emotional Development
- Health & Fitness
- Responsibility & Ethics
- Self-Directiontime management
- Tech Skillssocial media
- Thinking & Reasoningsolving puzzles
What's it about?
Taking turns with another player (online friends or random opponents), kids string together adjoining letters to create words on the Boggle-like board in Scramble With Friends. While kids might find a few words that are spelled out left to right, they'll also have to search diagonally and in a grid pattern, zigzagging across the screen to produce words. They can use word length and each letter's point value to maximize scores. Rounds are two minutes, and after three rounds the player with the higher score wins.
Is it any good?
Picking up SCRAMBLE WITH FRIENDS can be really bad for your productivity. And we say that in the nicest way possible. Taking a page from the classic board game Boggle and another from Words With Friends, this spelling game is addictive, entertaining, and wonderfully social. It can also be tricky if you have trouble making order out of chaos. The 16 letters on screen can taunt you as you search for words -- especially those that are more than three or four letters. Playing the game with friends from your Facebook or Twitter adds a degree of fun, since you're playing with friends, not strangers (it also adds a degree of safety). The free version is as fun as the paid version, but if you're planning to have several games going at once -- and you likely will before too long -- cough up the money for the paid version. It will save you money in the long run.
What kids can learn
Kids can learn to process chaotic information, finding words in a series of 16 random letters as they race through rounds in Scramble With Friends. The app can also help improve spelling and build vocabulary, but since the words are completely out of context and you can't look up meanings in the app, the app's ability to help build vocab is limited. Kids also engage in social activity via the "With Friends" aspect of the app -- they can connect with Facebook friends and other contacts to play. Scramble With Friends is fast-paced fun with lots of spelling practice, a dash of vocab, and plenty of socializing.
Subjects
- Arts:
- Hobbies: board games
- Language & Reading: letter or word recognition, reading, vocabulary
- Math:
- Science:
- Social Studies:
Skills
- Collaboration:
- Communication:
- Creativity: developing novel solutions
- Emotional Development:
- Health & Fitness:
- Responsibility & Ethics:
- Self-Direction: time management
- Tech Skills: social media
- Thinking & Reasoning: solving puzzles
How kids will learn
Scramble With Friends draws kids in with its fun, addictive qualities. After each game, both players get the option to start a rematch, so once you've started playing with a friend, you're likely to play game after game after game. And the more you play, the more spelling and vocab practice you get. The app makes it easy to recommend the game to friends, and also includes a chat function, so it encourages players to build social connections. After each round, players see lists of the words from the round, offering exposure to new words.
How parents can help
- Play the game with your kids, since it is, by design, a two-player title.
- After playing rounds with your kid, look at the word lists. Did either of you learn new words? Encourage kids to look up words they spelled out but don't know the meaning of.
- Show:
- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
Fun brain game mixes good time with self-education!
This game allows children and adults alike to think outside the box when brainstorming words to play. It is easily accessible and helps educate people in finding words they would not normally think of. You can play with friends as many times as you want! :)
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AGE
Quick and addictive
The rounds of this game are pretty quick, in the style of Bejeweled Blitz or Zuma Blitz. It is a fast way to play a game with your teens.
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AGE
Great
Great game nothing bad unless your childs choose bad words.
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AGE
RIP OFF!!!
I love the game, but they rip you off. I paid for the ad free version, and it locked up on me so I removed it from my phone and when I went to put it back on, they tried to charge me again!! I refuse to pay for something I have already paid for and now I run out of coins constantly or have to pay for those!! They get you any way they can! They basically stole my money and are now trying to get more. I also emailed them and they are choosing to ignore this issue!
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| Category: | Puzzle Games |
| Platforms: | iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad |
| Price: | $.99 |
| Size: | 15.30 MB |
| Publisher: | Zynga |
| Version: | 1.1.4.12 |
| Release date: | January 12, 2012 |
| Minimum software requirements: | iOS 4.0 or later |
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