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How scoring works: One Word Search
Your game score comes from your own puzzle result. Your party rank compares that score with your party's submissions for the same day.
Quick summary
One Word Search is scored on how fast you find all ten hidden words. Your time falls into one of four score brackets (1.0 down to 0.4) that match the game's own star ratings, with a 0.2 floor for solves slower than 4 minutes.
How to score well
- Solve as fast as you can — one minute or less (a 5-star game) is a perfect score.
- Each found word unlocks the next, so keep scanning while you drag.
- Even a slow solve earns at least 0.2 — there is no failure state.
- There is no tiebreaker, so players who finish at the same time share the same rank.
How ranking works in parties
- Your score is compared to other party members who solved the same day's One Word Search.
- There is no secondary tiebreaker — players who tie on time share the same rank.
- Ties are broken using competition ranking.
Example
You solve One Word Search #893 in 1:34 (a 4-star game). Your time falls in the 60–120s bracket, so you earn a normalized score of 0.8. A partymate who finished in 0:58 (5 stars) scores 1.0.
How to submit your score
After solving, tap SHARE, then choose PuzzleParty from the share sheet (iOS). On Android/web, tap SHARE to copy your result, then paste it into PuzzleParty.
Technical scoring data
{
"ranking": {
"tie_algorithm": {
"key": "competition_ranking",
"display_name": "Competition ranking"
}
},
"examples": [
"Solving in 0:47 (5 stars) earns a normalized score of 1.0.",
"Solving in 1:34 (4 stars) earns 0.8 \u2014 a typical quick solve.",
"Solving in 2:31 (3 stars) earns 0.6.",
"Solving in 4:04 (1 star) earns the 0.2 solved floor.",
"A manual DNF entry scores 0.0."
],
"rule_text": "Faster solve times produce better normalized scores. Scoring uses a step-function bracket table that mirrors the game's own star ratings: 1 minute or less (5 stars) earns 1.0, up to 2 minutes (4 stars) earns 0.8, up to 3 minutes (3 stars) earns 0.6, up to 4 minutes (2 stars) earns 0.4, and anything slower (1 star) earns the minimum solved score of 0.2. One Word Search has no failure state \u2014 you keep searching until all ten words are found \u2014 so every shared entry is solved.",
"edge_cases": [
"One Word Search has no failure share, so unsolved entries can only come from manual DNF entry.",
"Solved entries never score below 0.2, regardless of how slow the time is.",
"Times at exactly a bracket threshold (e.g., exactly 60s or 120s) receive that bracket's score (inclusive), matching the game's 'X minutes or less' star rules.",
"The star rating in the share is derived from time by the game itself and never affects the score independently.",
"There is no tiebreaker \u2014 players who tie on time share the same rank."
],
"measurement": {
"metric_key": "time_seconds",
"metric_label": "Time to solve",
"scoring_type": "time_based"
},
"human_review": {
"checklist": [
"Verify rule_text reflects the time-based scoring behavior and that the brackets match the game's published star thresholds.",
"Verify examples are readable and match expected outcomes across the bracket range.",
"Verify edge_cases make clear there is no failure share, stars never independently affect scoring, and there is no tiebreaker."
],
"machine_verifiable_scope": [
"measurement.scoring_type",
"absolute_scoring.method",
"absolute_scoring.solved_floor",
"absolute_scoring.unsolved_score",
"absolute_scoring.brackets",
"ranking.tie_algorithm.key"
]
},
"party_ranking": {
"normalization_summary": "Within a party, players are ranked on One Word Search by faster completion times first. There is no secondary tiebreaker and no failure state \u2014 every shared entry is solved. Each player earns one point for every party member they beat, plus one."
},
"schema_version": 1,
"absolute_scoring": {
"method": "time_based",
"brackets": {
"60": 1,
"120": 0.8,
"180": 0.6,
"240": 0.4
},
"scoring_type": "time_based",
"solved_floor": 0.2,
"unsolved_score": 0
}
}