Ryan Tubridy admitted he has been waking up in middle of the night thinking about ‘Wordle’ - but warned fellow fans that the fun of the game could be over soon.
It comes after it was revealed that The New York Times has bought the popular online game, which has led to worries that users could be charged to play it in future.
Confessing his love of the game, which sees played get six chances to guess a five-letter word once a day, the Late Late Show host said: “I have got on the Worlde bus and I am enjoying it.”
However, admitting he feels ‘pressure’ to keep up with his colleagues and friends to crack the word, he went on: “But I feel my palpitations, there’s a couple of people I work with across the way and they have taken to whatsapping me how quickly they are doing it and they are doing it much quicker than me and I can’t handle the pressure.
“Because I have to hand back my homework and it is not good. And I am back at school. I am reduced and I am wordshamed and I am embarrassed.
“So Wordle was great fun when you were on your own and then the smart ones came in and said ‘oh yeah i did it in three..’
He went on to admit: “I think I woke up at 4am this morning at one stage going ‘yeah I got a word with three vowels, that can be my opening word’.
Speaking on his RTE Radio 1 show, the presenter went on to react to the news of the takeover, and speculation about a possible price tag in the future.
He shared: “But the fun is over now in some ways…
“A, because of the people I just described, who I shall not name,” he joked.
“And b, because the guy who invested it as a cute thing for his girlfriend or something like that has sold it to the New York Times.
“And it is brilliant and I am a subscriber to New York Times and they have quizzes and crosswords, I don’t do them, but I heard they are really good.
“But there is only a matter of time before Wordle becomes less democratically available to all and will come, as they say, at a price.
“So that is where Wordle is going,” he said.
Wordle was acquired from its creator, Josh Wardle, a software engineer in Brooklyn, for a price “in the low seven figures,” The Times reported.
Despite fans' fears, the company said the game would initially remain free to new and existing players.
A fan of both the game and the publication, Tubridy joked about the sale, adding: “Everything has got a price, even Wordle.”
Wordle, which is a play on its creator, Wardle’s name, has been a global phenomenon, with millions of people playing the game daily.
The game provides a daily puzzle throwing up a five-letter word that players then have just six chances to guess.
Users can then share their results through rows of coloured bricks which indicate how close their guesses were to the correct word.
But with the huge success, creator Wardle admitted it became too “overwhelming” to run.
He wrote: “Since launching Wordle, I have been in awe of the response of everyone that has played.
“The game has gotten bigger than I ever imagined (which I suppose isn’t that much of a feat given I made the game for an audience of one).
“It has been incredible to watch the game bring so much joy to so many and I feel so grateful for the personal stories some of you have shared with me – from Wordle uniting distant family members, to provoking friendly rivalries, to supporting medical recoveries.
“On the flip side, I’d be lying if I said this hasn’t been overwhelming.
“After all, I am just one person, and it is important to me that, as Wordle grows, it continues to provide a great experience to everyone.
“Given this, I am incredibly pleased to announce that I’ve reached an agreement with The New York Times for them to take over running Wordle going forward.”
He went on to assure fans that the game would remain free in takeover.
“When the game moves to the NYT site, it will be free to play for everyone, and I am working with them to make sure your wins and streaks will be preserved.”
