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Swag Sunday: HexaLex (iPhone/iPod Touch)
Update: The codes have been dispersed and the people, they are playing HexaLex. Join us next week, folks! We're trying something a little different here at Joystiq for today's Swag Sunday post. Given the physicality of yesterday's naughty Swag Saturday, we're giving away five codes for hex-based crossword game HexaLex on iPhone and iPod Touch today -- immediately. We'll be picking one winner per hour for the next five hours from our comments section and hooking them up with a code to download the game (also immediately, should you so choose). Let us know your favorite "$20 word" in the comments and you could be using it to dominate friends in HexaLex by later today! To enter this giveaway: Leave a comment telling us your favorite "$20 word" (example: disambiguation). You must be 13 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec). Limit 1 entry per person. This entry period ends at 2:30PM ET on Sunday, July 18. At that time, we will randomly select five (5) winners to receive a copy of HexaLex (iPhone/iPod Touch) (ARV $2.99). For a list of complete rules, click here.%Gallery-97704% What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. Please note that Joyswag may be in "used" condition. For more info on our policy, click here.
TUAW's Daily App: HexaLex
HexaLex is a new title from developer Nathan Gray that offers up an interesting twist on the online Scrabble phenomenon. HexaLex has the same basic rules as most other word games (Words with Friends being probably the most popular iPhone title so far), with one big change: instead of squares, you use hexes to mark out the words. That creates a few interesting gameplay effects, including that you get a "bye" of two nonsense words per turn. If you can use the hexes to spell out multiple words, though, you can build up your score that way, too. Other than that, things aren't too different; you have a number of tiles to choose from, you can shuffle or exchange them as needed, and there's a full online complement to the game, complete with push notifications and nice options to brag or send messages back and forth. Unfortunately, the online service requires an account, which is something that probably would have been an obstacle for me if I was just checking out the game on my own. That's the main issue with a game like this -- if all of your friends are already playing Words with Friends, you'll be hard pressed to get them all to switch. Still, if you're a big wordsmith or if you have a few fellow players who are ready for a new variation on word games, HexaLex is worth a look. You can check the game out for US $2.99.
