Cross Words

What it is

Cross Words is a word game by Shaun Inman, who made Ratcheteer (Season One's finale) and has worked on several other Playdate projects. It's one of the six Playdate Season Three games still to unlock. When Panic first revealed it in Playdate Update #10 (9 September 2026), it was called "Word Trip 2: Cross Words". The Season Three page now lists it simply as Cross Words. The "2" points back to Word Trip, which its Catalog page credits to Inman. The Verge listed it among the Catalog's launch titles in March 2023 and called it "a good word game" with "something pretty unique inside the well-trod genre". Beyond The Verge's mention of "a word game" in the remaining lineup, no description or store page had been published as of 12 October 2026.

Season Three releases two games every Thursday until 29 October 2026, and Cross Words will be part of the $39 Season Three bundle. We'll replace this page with a full overview once it's out.

What others are saying

Nothing to quote yet: the game hasn't been released or described.

• Third Coast Review (Antal Bokor, 9 Oct 2026): is "especially looking forward to Shaun Inman's Cross Words". https://thirdcoastreview.com/games-tech/2026/10/09/review-playdate-season-3-launch
• The Verge (Andrew Webster, 9 Oct 2026): says the rest of the season includes "a word game". https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/1008441/playdate-season-3

Our take

We haven't reviewed Cross Words yet. It hasn't been released yet; this page sums up what has been officially announced.