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It's always exciting writing up the game report of a new game, getting to see which strategies were deployed and understanding whether the game played as I expected it to. But to run a game overlapping with an England world-cup match was either inspired or madness... 

Dry July was set in the African savannah, possibly in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the aim of the game was to secure as much water as possible by taking control of the oasis points from the Giraffes. For board game fans, there was a slight inspiration from Risk but without the element of chance. The rules were relatively simple, but the amount of information to store and process was significant. This meant that it was a challenging entry to MindGames for newcomers Ale, Ela, Kush and Barcob, all of whom rose to the task admirably!

A quick scan across the activities shows that across 14 teams the oases were seized a total 199 times, with the battle for control raging particularly strongly on Oasis 3, where four teams each took control of it four times (meaning that they also lost it at least three times). Most oases were captured by most teams, and three teams (Barcob, Endurancelife and Ryno) took control 18 times across the game. In terms of elephants placed, the numbers were remarkably consistent with 9 teams placing more than 40 elephants and no one placing more than 58.

Across the 14 teams, 25 elephants were fed to crocodiles, an entire team's worth.  The crocodile at Oasis 4 was particularly well fed, taking six elephants (from Barcob, Bobs, Ela, Eleanorphant, Kush and the KMs), but kudos goes to Campbell, Wacky and the (naturally) Crocodile DunDouglas, who all managed to avoid all eight crocodiles. 

The monkeys were there to help, and a number of teams breezed through with no wrong answers, (Ale, Barcob, Bobs, Wacky, Wintermute and WSW Wimbledon), in total there were only 34 wrong answers - 17 of which came from a single team... hats off to the KMs for their persistence at Monkey 2!

At the end of the eighty minutes, there was a mad dash to the finish, and thank you everyone who brought their elephants home. Kush, we appreciated you tidying them up back to the elephant base, unfortunately this doesn't earn any bonus points, but it at least prevents them from roaming around unmonitored, and well done for everyone making it back to the correct pub (more than I originally managed!).

Finally, a special shout out to the thematically brilliant names. Crocodile DunDouglas, Ryno and Eleanorphant proving that they can compete in names as well as on the course, all brilliant, and all winners. 

The scoreboards (below) reflect some tight battles. In the solos Bobs just got his nose (trunk?) in front right at the end, scoring 100 more than Campbell to take the victory, While Endurancelife pipped Ryno by a mere 60 points for the final podium spot. In the pairs Wacky took a commanding victory over WSW Wimbledon whose pre-run hydration strategy was somewhat suspect, and newcomers Barcob snuck in front of The KMs by just 30 points for third place. 

🚀What a weekend! 💫

We were delighted to be part of this year's Wellnergy Festival, bringing a bespoke festival version of one of our favourite games, Letterz, to thousands of festival-goers across two action-packed days. 🔠🌄

The festival gave us the opportunity to showcase what MindGames is all about: combining strategy, movement and teamwork to create experiences that get people thinking, moving and smiling at the same time. Throughout the weekend, players of all ages stepped into our world, taking on our specially adapted version of Letterz and discovering just how addictive the combination of quick thinking and active play can be.

One of the highlights of the weekend was activating the game on the Mind Stage on both mornings of the festival. Seeing crowds gather to play, compete and engage with the challenges was an incredible experience. There is something uniquely rewarding about watching people who have never encountered MindGames before throw themselves wholeheartedly into a game within minutes, embracing the challenge and the fun in equal measure. 🤜🤛

Away from the stage, we were thrilled to have a home in the Retail Village. This gave us the chance to meet and speak with hundreds of people throughout the weekend, sharing our philosophy and learning more about what motivates them to stay active, connected and engaged. We had countless conversations with people who share our belief that fitness doesn't have to mean repetitive exercise and that fun can be a powerful motivator for movement.

Wellnergy brought together an inspiring community of organisations, brands and individuals who are passionate about helping people live healthier, happier lives. Being part of that environment felt like a natural fit for MindGames, and we loved connecting with so many people who value both physical activity and play. 🙌

Of course, no MindGames event would be complete without a healthy dose of competition. Throughout the weekend, players kept a close eye on the leaderboards as scores continued to climb. What began as a fun challenge quickly became a fiercely contested battle for the top spots, with players returning to improve their scores, bringing friends over to challenge them, and refusing to give up their place on the podium without a fight! 🏆

Most of all, we want to thank everyone who stopped by to play, chat, compete, ask questions or cheer on friends and family. The enthusiasm, competitiveness and willingness to get involved made the weekend truly special.

We're leaving Wellnergy feeling inspired, energised and excited for what's next!

Wednesday 10th June and Gold Rush made a reappearance, this time with the majority of checkpoints located within Hyde Park. Participants had 80 minutes to collect as much gold as possible, using drones, horses and trains.  The only slight change to the rules from the first outing was the addition of a 'safety zebra' positioned by the zebra crossing to encourage players to cross the one main road at a sensible place. 🦓

It was fascinating watching the divergence of strategies right from the start as teams played to their strengths, some headed straight for the drones to test their brains, while others sought to round-up the horses and stretch their legs. Whichever strategy they chose, it was wise not to neglect the train, which even without upgrades could bring in a handy 40kg of gold. 💰

Stan&Ashleigh were the first to set the train off, after just five minutes, closely followed by Douglas, Isobel&Marieta and Mogadorians. Five teams opted to upgrade their trains, with additional carriages proving more popular than additional speed. This resulted in a total of 406kg of gold being collected off the train. 🚂

For the cowboys there were eight horses, and one bandit, scattered around the park. All horses were caught at least once, and eight teams found the bandit. Only one team, EnduranceLife, opted to go and recollect their lost horse, which either means other teams gave them up for the bandit, or they were fortunate in the timing of the bandit's appearance. The mine was located down near the Serpentine, not a big hill, but enough to be a little bit wearing if. Endurancelife led the way with four trips to the mine, while individuals from Wintermute, Douglas and Stan&Ashleigh made three trips each. All this activity resulted in a total of 255kg of gold being collected from the mine. 🌟

For the brains of the teams a network of puzzles allowed drones to automatically deliver gold to your base. There were three levels, each with seven puzzles on, and although no teams cleared all three levels The TA came closest with 18 of 21 puzzles solved, meaning that by the end they had 15 drones in the air and were collecting 3kg of gold every minute. The Mogadorians also deserve a mention as the other team to break into Level 3. Across all teams the Drones proved the most lucrative, with a massive 578kg collected across the teams. 🫰

However, it was balanced strategies that counted best, and on this course it was no surprise that the pairs that divided and conquered came out on top, with Stan & Ashleigh coming in victorious with 170kg of gold, closely followed by Mogadorians with 155kg and The TA on 138kg. And a host of teams close behind. 🏆

In the individuals Endurancelife's shuttle runs to the mine proved enough with 130kg banked, closely followed by Wintermute on 115kg and then Fools Gold on 75kg. Impressive hauls all round. 🙌

A particular congratulations to the MindGames first timers, there's a lot to think about with Gold Rush, and when I was out on course I was impressed how everyone had a strategy and were executing it. And thanks to Neighaa and Fools Gold, for the puns, much appreciated! 🐎🐎

We've got a game this weekend back in the same area, it will be a slightly smaller course, suitable for smaller legs or walkers, but there's plenty of running to be done if you want it! Otherwise we will soon be sharing details of our brand new game that we're debuting on 1st July. 💧🦒🗺️

It was great to see so many groups at our event this morning on Epsom Common. We hope they had a great time braving the heat and channelling their polar power to boost their bear's supplies. Everyone did bear-illiantly to get out and about on such a warm and sticky day!

Here are the final standings after all fish have been weighed up: 

Season Finale!

Here’s how the game unfolded…

Wednesday 20th May saw the dawn of a brand new game: Stake Out! The objective was simple in theory but brutal in practice — save as many citizens as possible, for as long as possible, against progressive waves of vampires. 🧛‍♀️🧛‍♂️🧛

⏱️Every ten minutes a fresh batch of vampires descended onto the board, and players had to hunt for garlic or earn crosses to repel the undead onslaught.

✝️The crosses — naturally guarded by puzzles — didn’t slow anyone down, with 30 crosses earned across the game. Eleanaarggh claimed the first cross at 5m 53s, beating Ry by just 4 seconds, and securing early R&E bragging rights. Crosses were strongest early on: a cross placed before the first night could repel up to seven vampires, equivalent to seven garlic. Their power dropped by one each night.

🧄Garlic (each clove killing one vampire) introduced a new MindGames concept: Player vs Player dynamics. Of the twenty garlic spots on the board, only twelve were active at any time. Once a garlic was collected by anyone, it vanished for everyone and respawned elsewhere. Feedback so far suggests this added a fresh strategic layer without making garlic‑hunting too frustrating — but all opinions are very welcome!

🌙When it came to saving citizens, every team survived to the sixth night with at least some population intact, and all but two teams finished with survivors. Martin — aka Van Helsing — fought to the bitter end, saving his final two citizens in the closing moments. Had there been an eighth night, it’s unlikely many would have lived to see it.

🗡️Amid the chaos, there were standout performances. Campbell looked in control early, losing only four citizens across the first three nights. But the final night proved his undoing, and Shovelinhead (Doug), who took heavier early losses, pulled off an incredible save of 131 citizens on the final night — nearly half of the original 276 population.

📊If graphs and stats are your thing, the full breakdown is available here. Please do share any insights you spot!

What an incredible collaboration! The TRYBZ community absolutely threw themselves into the challenge — every player got stuck in, racing through Battersea Park with full focus and big smiles. It was the perfect day for movement and adventure, as teams navigated their way through checkpoints, cracked puzzles, and climbed level by level to escape the tower, earning gold as they went. The energy was electric from start to finish, with everyone giving their best and cheering each other on. We wrapped up with matchas, coffees, and aperols at The Pear Tree Café — the ideal way to celebrate a fab afternoon of teamwork, laughter, and pure TRYBZ spirit. 

Get set.. SPELL!

Our much loved Scrabble game WOKE (24pts) from a slumber in Primrose Hill this week, the Princess of Wales aka POW (8pts) BOOKED (51 pts) us a great briefing area and with a new letter set, a new map and new puzzles, old strategies were given a SHAKE (19pts) down.

The game clock was set to 80 minutes, and before players FROZE (58 pts) in the surprisingly cool evening I instructed them, "thou SHALT (15 pts) not LAZE (36pts), tie up your SHOELACE (57pts), TAKE (11 pts) this map and get your SKATE (34 pts) on",   and they BLAZED (66pts) away from the start line.

Checkpoints were distributed across Primrose Hill and into Regents Park, multiple people expected the "Play Word" to be at the CREST (21 pts) of the hill, but instead it was the puzzles that required players to SWEAT (23 pts) to reach. THESE (15 pts) checkpoints gave players the opportunity to multiply their scores, although only one bonus could be used per word.

London ZOO (32 pts) seemed to provide plenty of inspiration with a SHOAL (15 pts) of animals played, there was a KOALA (34 pts) a COW (8 pts), a GUPPY (20 pts) and Spike even managed to find some (wood?)PECKERS (48pts), WOOF! (17pts). We had a pair of POKERS (24 pts) as Eleanor and Jonny both POKED (19/24 pts) their noses in front at various times, while Martin was content to STALK (16 pts) the pack looking to find the WEAK (14 pts) link.

After 80 minutes everyone returned to the pub and as the HAZE (51 pts) of the game lifted, strategies were discussed over some CHOW (15 pts), and KOHL (36 pts) reapplied.

It was great to see so many first timers, and despite there being plenty of SCOPE (22pts) for looking like a BOZO (28 pts) everyone emerged far from HAZED (29 pts), instead they found it a WALTZ (58 pts) in the park, although looking at the distances covered some people might be looking for a BUGGY (31 pts) to get them back to the tube stop.

ZAP (32pts)! Looking forward two weeks, now is the time to STAKE (16 pts) your spot at the series finale, there may even be CAKES (29 pts).

Thank you as always to everyone who came down, our regular crowd and our future regular crowd (aka first timers), please do continue to help us spread the word, bring friends, family, colleagues... every recommendation and review is a COG (6 pts) in the MindGames machine!

The Tale of the Snake

Wednesday saw the return of Snakes & Ladders, first played in the dark around Pimlico, this time from The Bear in Paddington. The real allure was Hyde Park just south of the pub, and no one was surprised to find that’s where all the snakes had escaped to. It was the first time that headtorches weren’t required, and the first time using the open ground of a park; both seemed to be well received. 

With this being a returning game, many teams opted to rely on their memories and the stage notes, skipping the briefing and heading out straight away, leaving more time at the end for a drink and a debrief. A classic risk/reward decision! 

 Before reaching the park, there were a few apples to collect. Most teams headed to Apple 2 first, which involved moving blocks between posts in a 'Towers of Hanoi'-style game. Unlike a fortnight ago at Tower Escape, where teams were asked to move the blocks between rooms, this time teams only had to work out the minimum number of moves, which seemed to present no problems for most, with Dan, Wintermute and Spike all claiming it within the first 4 minutes—and within 18 seconds of each other.

Apple 8 was the logical next step, which all teams glided through, spotting that the distances related to the number of letters in the name. Only Snakey McLadderface required a second attempt, and even then the delay was minimal.

 Once inside the park, the dice points were laid out with further apples surrounding them, offering teams the opportunity to grab apples while moving around the board. But snake value was decreasing, so there was a rush to grab them as quickly as possible, or to head to the top of the board and get the multiplier bonus.

Most teams headed for the snakes on 13 and 17, but Wintermute and Bobs headed up the ladder on square 12 to grab the snake on 36 first. Dan was the only one to capture a snake within the first 10 minutes and therefore score the maximum 60 points, doing so with just 27 seconds left in the level. Wintermute was unfortunate to miss out by just 12 seconds on the same achievement.

 Snakes continued to be collected at a good rate across all teams, with a grand total of fifty snakes collected from the park, and everyone managing to avoid falling into The Serpentine! NorwegianJesus had some excellent late-game play, bagging two snakes in the final 15 minutes, although it was Gammy who cut it finest, grabbing their final snake with just 3m49s left on the clock, leaving a challenging sprint for the finish line.

 The game was as much about brains as brawn. The apples were of varying degrees of difficulty, with all claimed at one point or another. For the avoidance of doubt, London hosted the Olympics in 2012, so the answer required londonlondonlondon... twelve times—an exercise in precision as well as puzzling. The mixed-up fruit was a 'granny smith', and Homer was not a character in Friends, so 'ehmor' was the odd one out.

 The scoring was incredibly close. As revealed on the night, Dan squeezed a victory by just 2.5 points, but there were many more close battles. To take a full look, head over to the game data and review The Tale of the Snake.

 Lastly, a few thank yous: firstly to our newcomers, John and Martin—there’s a lot to take in the first time, but it is impressive how quickly you picked it up, catching snakes, solving puzzles and moving up the board like pros.

And secondly, although he couldn’t take part, a big thanks to Tim, who kindly did a recce of the course earlier in the week, giving me another week for my ankle to recover.

*A Tale of Wit, Blocks, Sausages, and One Very Hungry Dog*  

The Gates Open:

At the stroke of the 90-minute bell, nine teams stormed the castle gates and found themselves in the **Lobby** — the first of four ground-floor rooms concealing the clues they'd need to unpick the tower's first lock. From the Lobby to the **Lounge**, the **Office**, and finally the **Kitchen**, each team scurried through the lower chambers gathering fragments of the riddle.

**Bobs** and **The Grape Escape** snapped up the very first clues before the dust had even settled, with most of the field close behind. The notable exception was **Getfrank**, whose Matt Lacey didn't clear the Kitchen until the 77-minute mark — and when he finally tried the padlock... it didn't budge. Twice. A bold strategy. It did not pay off immediately.

The first teams to crack the padlock and ascend were **Bobs** and **R&E**, both springing free at the 84-minute mark, earning 100 gold apiece. **The Grape Escape** followed swiftly, and the race upwards was on.

The Word Chain Wars:

Level 2 revealed the tower's word-chain puzzle, requiring players to chain together a sequence of passcodes — *note → notebook → laptop → turntable*. Elegant in design. Humbling in execution.

R&E's Eleanor confidently submitted *"lapturn"* — not a word, not a passcode, not found in any dictionary in the kingdom. Ryan of the same team countered with *"turntop"* and then *"topturn"*, as though the puzzle might eventually capitulate through sheer stubbornness. Roderick of PrisonerX also tried *"topturn"*, apparently reading from the same dubious playbook. 

Despite the linguistic adventures, Bobs blazed through fastest, completing the full chain and unlocking the staircase at the 78-minute mark — a full level ahead of most rivals.

The Block Puzzle (or: How to Build a Ladder Badly) :

Level 4 presented the castle's block-stacking challenge: collect blocks from Room 4.1, stage them correctly through Room 4.2, and stack them in the right order at the Up checkpoint to magically fuse them into a ladder. Simple in theory. An extended comedy of errors in practice.

Bobby set the tone — picking up blocks, placing them wrong, being told he couldn't stack a larger block on a smaller one (three times), putting blocks down, picking them back up again. The ladder finally *"magically fused"* at the 65-minute mark. A triumph of persistence over elegance.

Getfrank's Matt Lacey elevated block-stacking to something approaching performance art. His logs around the 31-minute mark show him picking up and placing the same block *eight times in a row* — a hypnotic loop that the castle observed with quiet bewilderment. He completed it with just 18 minutes remaining.

The Grape Escape, R&E, and Wintermute all completed their ladders with considerably more composure. Pairs teams had a natural advantage here, with one player able to manage Room 4.1 while the other handled Room 4.2 — and R&E made light work of it as a result. Special mention however goes to Roderick (PrisonerX), Edmund, and John Pickup (Wintermute), all of whom executed a mathematically perfect solution — the classic Towers of Hanoi puzzle has a minimum of 7 moves for 3 blocks, and all three made exactly 7 pickups and 7 placements without a single error. While others were wrestling with the laws of physics, these three were working from first principles. Flawless performances all round.

Level 5: The Castle's Residents:

With the ladder built, teams emerged onto Level 5 — the castle's social floor, home to six residents each offering gold in exchange for completing their challenges. With 460 gold on offer across all six, and only about an hour left on the clock, teams had to choose wisely.

The Chef  offered 50 gold in exchange for sausages — but the sausages weren't for eating. Sharp-eyed teams will have noticed the hungry dog lurking on Level 3 on their way up, with no obvious explanation and no way past. The Chef's sausages were the missing piece — hurled at the hound to clear the path and claim the reward. For those who'd already met the dog, it was a satisfying moment of joined-up thinking. For those who hadn't, it was a trip back downstairs.

The King  issued a rather less polite request: "Go catch some rats." Worth up to 120 gold for a full extermination, this was the richest physical challenge in the castle. Bobby led all solo hunters with a remarkable 9 rats, closely chased by Wintermute and The Grape Escape on 8 each. As a team however, R&E were the true exterminators — Eleanor and Ryan combined for all 12 rats, a complete royal extermination and the full 120 gold. Not a single rat remained. The King was most pleased.

The Princess  requested the return of her missing cat, Mittens, who had wandered back to the Lounge. Ryan reunited them first at the 17-minute mark, with Gammy's Sam Smith following shortly after — both earning the full 80-gold quest reward. Spike accepted the quest but Mittens, apparently, wanted nothing to do with him. The Princess remained inconsolable.

The Dragon's hoard rewarded the mentally sharp with 60 gold — claimed by Bobby, Ryan, Spike and Gina. The Jester  also offered 60 gold, collected by Spike and Ryan.

The Queen's puzzle was the most demanding of all — a three-layer mental challenge paying out 10, 30, and 50 gold for each layer solved, with a punishing 30-second lockout for wrong answers. Eleanor of R&E was the standout performer, weathering three lockouts without flinching and solving all three layers for the full 90 gold. Edmund and Spike both solved the first two layers. Several teams found the Queen a cruel mistress in the closing minutes, with Bobby and John Pickup taking lockouts late on.

The Final Climb & The Gold Count:

With time running out, teams made their final dash to the Finish checkpoint at the top of the tower, each collecting a **50-gold completion bonus** on the way out. Eight of the nine teams made it —congratulations to all teams for a game well played!

The maximum possible gold is **855 for a pair** and **805 for a solo player** — and the performances are all the more impressive measured against that benchmark 

Game report - Series 2 Round 1 - 🐻‍❄️🎣Deep Blue - 25th March - Surrey Quays

Deep Blue Returns to Surrey Quays ❄️

Wednesday saw us return to Surrey Quays — and back to the Arctic, complete with near zero-degree temperatures. Given that the last time we ran Deep Blue we had frozen ponds in St Katharine’s Dock, it might be time to swap the Arctic for the jungle next time…

For those new to the format, Deep Blue challenges teams to dive beneath the ice, managing a strict 10-minute timer between air holes. Along the way, teams can recruit SEAL units to hunt on their behalf, or upgrade their capabilities with a visit to the Wise Walrus — perched (as ever) on top of a local hill.

Fast Starts and Early Strategy

The SEALs were in high demand from the outset. Seal 2 offered little resistance, recruited four times within the opening two minutes by Wintermute, Bobs, Campbell and SoloSam. Cool Runnings, Last and Furious, and No Pace, All Vibes quickly followed.

Seal 3 became the next key target, with Campbell, R&E and Cool Runnings all securing a second SEAL within the first seven minutes — setting each one up to collect over 35kg of fish.

Seal 1 proved more challenging, with only four teams managing to crack it. The double puzzle required teams to identify anagrams of David, George and Andrew, determine the missing fourth — Patrick — and then rearrange all names back into alphabetical order. SoloSam were first to solve it, closely followed by All Pace, No Vibes.

Big Plays Under Pressure

Beneath the surface, conditions were favourable. An additional air hole meant there was no excuse for running out of air, and despite a demanding loop at the southern end of the map, no fish were lost underwater.

As the clock ticked down, confidence was high and teams began banking significant hauls. Cool Runnings secured 131.5kg with 10 minutes remaining, Last and Furious followed with 165kg with four minutes to go, and Campbell delivered the largest single deposit of the game — 171.5kg — with just three minutes left.

Wintermute left it even later, banking with only two minutes remaining before a final sprint to the finish.

The Walrus Dilemma

The Wise Walrus once again introduced a key strategic decision: invest in further upgrades, or maximise returns at your current level?

Last and Furious and Bobs opted to take the risk, committing to a second lesson with 32 and 26 minutes remaining respectively. Campbell, however, chose to remain at Level 2 — a decision that ultimately proved decisive.

As for the optimal strategy? Still up for debate. One thing is certain: falling down the steps by Seal 3 (as discovered during recce) is not recommended.

Final Results 🏆

A huge congratulations to everyone who took part — and to those who stayed on to celebrate afterwards.

• 1st: Campbell

• 2nd: Cool Runnings (Spike)

• 3rd: Last and Furious (Tom)

In the pairs competition, Ryan & Eleanor continued their winning streak, while No Pace, All Vibes impressed with a second-place finish on debut.

The game opened cautiously, with most teams spending the first stretch gathering letters and scoping the map. Euro Bitches were among the first out of the blocks, snapping up a word bonus early and setting an aggressive tone — though their first attempt (LSH) suggested the letters weren't always cooperating.

The clueless of SW were also moving quickly, banking their first word, LOST, at the 22-minute mark — which, in hindsight, was either a statement of intent or a moment of self-awareness. They went on to play five words in total, keeping busy all game, though their choices (LOST, SEAL, SOUR, PIN...) suggested they may have been prioritising quantity over, shall we say, flamboyance.

Baby on board had a rocky middle stretch — SLTE and a couple of other mystery submissions disappeared into the void — but they rallied spectacularly, finishing with HORSEY, CURL, and the crowd-pleasing QUIP, capped off with a 3x word bonus on a well-timed QUIP. Not bad for a team reportedly travelling with extra cargo.

THEFASTCATS lived up to their name in the final quarter, producing the rousing SAILOR (30 pts) and THREES (25 pts) in quick succession near the end of the game — clearly they'd been saving their best letters for a dramatic finish. Whether that was strategy or just how the checkpoints fell, it worked.

Negronis — ah, the Negronis. Only two words submitted, but what words. LOSERS is either a confident piece of trash talk or a Freudian slip, and STOIC is frankly the most on-brand response to a difficult afternoon that we've ever seen. Respect.

And then there were Brains of Battersea. Methodical, patient, and absolutely ruthless when it counted. STORY and SHEET were solid early earners. SCOUR showed range. PEN was a moment of pragmatism. But QUAIL — played with a 3x word bonus in the dying minutes for 41 points — was the move of the day. The Brains, it turns out, were brainy.

 HIGHLIGHTS

• Word of the day: QUAIL — 41 pts, Brains of Battersea. Majestic.

• Most industrious: The clueless of SW and Brains of Battersea — 5 words each

• Best average per word: Brains of Battersea — 20.7 pts per word

• Longest words: LOSERS, SAILOR, THREES — a three-way tie at 6 letters

• Bravest attempt: HEALT (Negronis) — not a word, but we admire the conviction

• Most poetic sequence: The clueless of SW playing LOST, then THEY, then SOUR — a haiku of mild misfortune

Huge congratulations to Brains of Battersea — thoroughly deserved! And thanks to everyone for a brilliant game. Hope to see you again soon! 💜