Solent Open

Connections Hint – Strategy for Handling the "One Away!" Notification

In connections hint, the “One Away!” indication can be a helpful clue, rather than a warning that you’ve made a wrong pick. If three words are clearly related and the fourth word is not related then you don’t have to start from scratch. One good method is to preserve the three words that are most strongly associated, and to replace the other choice with another word on the board. This approach simplifies the alternatives and reduces the number of futile efforts. This also makes for less complex board navigation early on, as the Yellow Group generally has the most straightforward connections. Once the Yellow Group is cleared players can move on to the Green and Blue groups and then take on the Purple one. 

Purple Group is usually the hardest to find, as it can be wordplay, missing sentences, or less evident connections. If a group is being especially elusive, the new Connections Hint feature will display color-coded suggestions one at a time instead of the complete answer. This makes the challenge easier to solve , but leaves the player to do most of the deductive work.