'Zzz' Spells Discontent for Scrabble Enthusiasts

But apparently not for US players

(NEWSER) - Kinda cool: You can now use Indian words like "aloo" and "gobi" in Scrabble. Not so cool: You can also use slang words like "thang," "innit," and (cringe) "grrl." All of the above have been added to Collins Official Scrabble Words, a book one world champion says is "like the Bible really for Scrabble players." Good news for North American players, however: You can still snarkily deride anyone who tries to pull a "grrl," as the champ concedes that US and Canada players use Webster's dictionary, not Collins. More»

Mikki Nicholson clocks the competition with 'obeisant'

(NEWSER) - How many points for "unforgettable"? Pink-wigged transsexual Mikki Nicholson woke up the stodgy image of Scabble yesterday when she grabbed Britain's top game award with the word "obeisant" (look it up) finally putting her over the top. "I'm thrilled to have won and I can't wait to celebrate," said Nicholson, a long-time player who credited her win to her intuition and her skill with ... numbers. "People think Scrabble is just about words, but it's the numbers that win the game so a sound mathematical brain is an advantage," she told the BBC . More»

Rules won't change for original game

(NEWSER) - Just imagine "Jay-Z" as a triple word score: A new edition of Scrabble will bring with it a change to one of the game’s cardinal rules—proper nouns will be legal. Mattel won’t regulate which names are allowed or introduce any rules governing spelling, it’ll just let players work it out for themselves, reports the BBC . But traditionalists shouldn't fear, notes CNET : That change and others (such as backward words and stealing letters) will only be in a version sold as Scrabble Trickster. More»

Let's be honest, Risk and Monopoly were never for kids anyway

(NEWSER) - You probably loved board games as a kid—and guess what? Some of them are still fun now. Ten of the best, courtesy of teagueb at LikeMe :

1. Payday: It never got as popular as the similar LIFE, but it’s even cooler because it’s measured in real time—meaning “you can play for six months, a year, or an entire adult lifetime.”
2. Battleship: The best part is “being able to say ‘You sank my battleship!’ in faux-outrage.”
3. Candyland: This one is only fun as an adult if you turn it into a drinking game.
4. Monopoly: “If you ever wanted to see what capitalist evil lurks in the hearts of your friends? Set aside 14 hours or so and play Monopoly with them.”

ZQFMGB not included

(NEWSER) - Sure, Bart Simpson could fake it at Scrabble—but for those of us playing against a wit sharper than Homer's, here are some gems Mental Floss magazine dug up that actually mean something:

• Cwm: A valley created by glacial shifts.
• Adz: An axe-like woodworking tool.
• Xu: The currency of Vietnam.