Wordle, Solitaire & Brain Games —
Without the Ad Traps
Published August 2026 · Last verified August 2026
Solitaire, Wordle, crosswords, sudoku, chess — every one of them has a genuinely free, genuinely pleasant version. This guide hands you the vetted list, then shows you how to walk past the "free" games built to squeeze money out of you.
Solitaire, Wordle, crosswords, sudoku, chess — every one of them has a genuinely free, genuinely pleasant version. This guide hands you the vetted list, then shows you how to walk past the "free" games built to squeeze money out of you.
What's inside this guide
The printable PDF walks through 21 short chapters, in plain language. It also includes at-a-glance pictures.
- The Games Are Great. The Business Model Isn't.
- If You Only Read One Page, Read This One
- Wordle and the New York Times Free Games
- Crosswords and Word Searches, the Clean Way
- Real Solitaire, Without the Garbage
- Sudoku, Mahjong & Jigsaw Puzzles
- Chess and Checkers — Against the Computer or the
- Your Library Card Is a Games Pass
- The Honest List, Side by Side
- How “Free” Games Actually Cost Money — and Sanity
- Fake Buttons, Fake Prizes, Fake Viruses
- Ad Avalanches, Weekly Fees & the Gem Economy
- How to Read an App-Store Listing in 60 Seconds
- Make Accidental Purchases Impossible
- Do Brain Games Actually Train Your Brain?
- Words With Friends, Game Chat & the Stranger
- The Right Screen for Comfortable Playing
- Build Your Clean Game Shelf Tonight
- Questions I Hear at Kitchen Tables
- The Jargon, Translated
- Tape This by the Computer
Get the printable guide
Everything above is a quick summary. The full, printable guide — the same words, laid out to read and keep by the computer — is a free PDF.
Last verified August 2026.
Want the clean game shelf built for you?
One $99 flat-rate visit: I set up the vetted games, lock purchases behind your password, cancel any junk subscriptions, and leave you mid-solitaire with everything working. 30-day follow-up included. Serving Portage County.
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