A Deku Studios game
GLYPHS
Word Battle
Same grid. Two minutes. Best vocabulary wins.
Trace words on a 5x5 board against real people for real prizes. Every player in your tournament gets the identical grid and the identical clock, and the server checks every word.
You do not have to pay to play
Glyphs is free to download and free to play. Acorn tournaments cost nothing and are available everywhere. Cash tournaments are optional, and they run only in states where independent counsel has opined they are lawful.
Before launch
Get $5 in bonus cash at launch
Leave an email and we will send you a code worth $5 in bonus cash, redeemable when Glyphs opens.
Bonus cash is a promotional credit, not withdrawable currency. It can be used toward tournament entry where cash tournaments are available. 18+ only. One code per person.
How a tournament runs
- 01
Pick a table
1v1 or Group, up to 10 players. Enter with acorns for free, or with cash where cash tournaments are available.
- 02
Everyone gets the same grid
Every player in your tournament receives the identical 5x5 board from the same server-side seed. Same letters, same positions, same two-minute clock.
- 03
Trace words
Drag across adjacent tiles in any direction, including diagonals, to build words of three letters or more. Longer words score sharply higher.
- 04
Best board wins
Vocabulary and speed decide the standings. Group tournaments pay the top three. Ties break on your longest word, then total words found.
The part the category gets wrong
Two complaints follow every cash word game. Both are answered here.
Players say the same two things about this genre: the boards feel rigged, and you are probably playing a bot. Those are fair things to worry about. Here is exactly what Glyphs does about each.
Same grid for every player
A tournament is one seeded board. You and everyone you are playing against see the identical letters in the identical positions. The seed is generated server-side and is never handed to the client before the game starts.
Every board is checked before it is used
A grid enters the pool only if it contains a healthy number of findable words. You will not be dropped onto a board nobody can score on.
The server has the final word, literally
Every submission is validated server-side against the Collins Scrabble Words dictionary. The word list on your device makes the game feel instant; it does not decide anything. Neither does your device clock.
We tell you the rake
15 percent on 1v1 and 17.5 percent on Group, taken from the real-cash portion of the pool only. Bonus cash entries are not raked. That is the whole revenue model. There are no in-app purchases.
Glyphs runs on the Deku platform. The same guarantees cover every game we ship.
Read the full fairness policyWhat is in the game
1v1 and Group tournaments
Head to head, or a table of up to ten. Daily events, and a standings history for every tournament you have played.
Free acorn tables
Acorns are the free entry currency. Acorn tournaments run everywhere, cost nothing, and play by the identical rules.
Length is the whole score
Three letters scores ten. Eight letters scores two hundred and keeps climbing. No random multipliers, no bonus tiles, nothing between you and the board.
Two minutes, start to finish
Most cash gaming sessions run five to fifteen minutes. A Glyphs round is two. Speed is a feature, not a compromise.
The money, stated plainly
- Entry tiers
- $1 to $50Acorn tables are free
- Rake, 1v1
- 15%Real-cash portion only
- Rake, Group
- 17.5%Bonus cash entries are not raked
- In-app purchases
- NoneRake is our only revenue
Player funds are held in a segregated account at Mercury Technologies, with deposits held by FDIC-insured partner banks. Age verification and KYC are required before any withdrawal.
Straight answers
Is this gambling?
Glyphs is a skill contest, not a game of chance. Every player faces the same grid, and the result turns on the words you find in it. Cash tournaments run only in jurisdictions where independent counsel has opined that skill contests of this kind are lawful, and free acorn play is available everywhere.
Do I have to spend money?
No. The game is free to download and free to play. Acorn tournaments cost nothing. Cash entry is optional.
Are the boards rigged?
No, and the design makes it checkable. A tournament is a single seeded grid shared by every player in it, generated server-side and never revealed to a client early. The board does not change based on how you are doing.
Who am I playing against?
Glyphs matches players into tournaments on the same grid and the same clock. We publish how matchmaking and scoring work rather than asking you to take our word for it. See the fairness policy for the detail.
What counts as a word?
The Collins Scrabble Words list, roughly 280,000 entries, checked on the server. If it is in the dictionary and you traced it correctly, it scores.
How do I get paid?
Winnings land in your Glyphs wallet when the tournament adjudicates. Withdrawals require age verification and identity verification, which is a legal requirement, not a stalling tactic.
Where can I play for cash?
Cash tournaments run in select US states only. The current list is published on the Deku Studios site and is enforced by the app itself, which verifies your location before any cash entry.
- 18+ only. Glyphs verifies age and identity before any withdrawal.
- Cash tournaments are available in select US states only, and Glyphs verifies your location before every cash entry. Free acorn play is available everywhere.
- Glyphs is a skill-based contest. Prizes are awarded on performance. Nothing here is a promise of winnings or income.
- Bonus cash is a promotional credit and is not withdrawable.
If play stops being fun, stop. Call the National Council on Problem Gambling at 1-800-426-2537, any time.