Do you enjoy being the first to play a new Wordtwist puzzle?

[Calamar]

Hi all,

I was wondering about this as I finished my latest Wordtwist puzzle. There's always a rush of anticipation when being the very first to try out a new puzzle, whether its 4X4 or 5x5 (especially when I see all the 7+ words possible!). However, I'm usually disappointed in my results when its all over because there are so many words I discover JUST after the timer dings. As I'm not a very fast typist, I concentrate on finding the "best word" or "longest word". With that goal in mind, I find I can focus just a bit better if someone has "broken the ice" by playing a puzzle before me; it sort of gives me a goal post to aim for.

[lostwords]

While I do not, as a rule, shoot for highest point score, I also find the new puzzles a bit distracting. As a really slow typist, I need to go for the short, ultra rare words in order to get any sort of decent score. (I am still at the point where any game over 250 points is good game and anything over 300 is a triumph and cause for a little happy dance.) With the new boards, my focus is off just enough to throw the game balance; many times I am disappointed by the results.

That said, the opposite has also been true for me. While I will sometimes play the boards that have been played over 1,000 times out of sheer perversity and stubbornness, I often avoid them. I have, however, retired a couple of them by finding the last word. Definitely a whoo-hoo moment!)

But whatever the boards, here we are again. . .

[junee]

Between last night and today, I must have played forty brand new games. I don't have new-game paralysis anymore. Thankfully, all the horrible scores I get the first time out are quickly overwritten by the next person. But now that I'm over the first-game jitters, I'm scoring a lot better on these. Just forgive me the earlier pitiful scores if you run across any.