Unashamedly simple, web-based rather than an app, and with a creator who did not want it to become addictive - even though many craved more than one puzzle a day - or weighed down by ads or data harvesting, it nevertheless amassed millions of users in just a few months, in part because the answer grids were shareable on social media.
And then, in true internet-hit fashion, it was sold - in this case, for an undisclosed seven-figure sum to the New York Times (NYT).
Devised by Reddit engineer Josh Wardle - to play with his partner, in lockdown - Wordle offers up just one hidden five-letter word each day.
But many are unconvinced the NYT's promise to keep the game free to play will last long.
Susie Dent, of Channel 4's Countdown programme, hopes it will stay "free and on the web".
But Nick Bowman, associate professor of the creative media industries, at Texas Tech University, told BBC News: "Although the New York Times has pledged that the game will be free, folks worry about what other costs might come up.
"If users have to start sharing data to play the game or if they're required to create usernames and profiles or if the game were to start embedding advertising cookies, I suspect it might lose some of its appeal."
There is no doubting its phenomenal rise.
In October, the Wordle website had 5,000 monthly visits - according to Similarweb - by the end of January, 45 million.
The US, Australia and the UK captured 66% of the traffic, the digital-intelligence platform found, and, on average, users spent over eight minutes on the site - impressive stats for any gaming purchase.
But Prof Bowman said it could yet prove an expensive white elephant for the NYT.
It's a mistake to presume that Wordle per se is what we want," he said, "and I'm unsure if the game is really designed with sustainability in mind.
"It's a very fun novelty - but there is an underlying itch that the game is scratching that is far more complicated."
And while he is unsure anyone "has a handle on" just what Wordle's secret sauce is, it "probably isn't about the words".
"We have had word-based games for a very long time," Prof Bowman added, "and there is no shortage of casual games on the market."
Part of the reason it has captured imaginations is it has created its own simple universe - and one that is the antithesis of the digital world many inhabit.
Word of mouth played a huge part in its organic and inexorable rise but also the fact it demands very little of its users - just five minutes or so per day, without even requesting they "come back tomorrow", although many do.
And it quickly became a cultural phenomenon - outgrowing its grids to become part of the wider world, as users crocheted its patterns or and saw them in everyday objects.
Its shareability is also key, prompting daily chats among friends and family, who share grids and strategies.
For many, these involve a certain kind of logic - using common vowels or consonants, for example - while others keep spreadsheets to track previously used words.
But ultimately there can be no real failures, because, everyone agrees, a large dose of luck is also involved.
You must be logged in to post a comment.