NYT Mini Crossword for today: solutions for Friday, April 18.

      Sam Hill / Digital Trends

      Do you enjoy crossword puzzles but find it hard to find the time for a full-sized one in your daily newspaper? That's where The Mini comes in! This smaller version of the New York Times' famous crossword puzzle offers a quick way to challenge your crossword abilities each day, taking significantly less time (most players take just over a minute on average to finish). Although The Mini is less complex than a standard crossword, it can still present challenges; getting stuck on one clue might mean the difference between achieving a personal best and an embarrassing attempt at solving it. Similar to our Wordle and Connections hints, we're here to assist you with The Mini if you're currently in need of a little guidance. Below are the answers for today's NYT Mini crossword.

      **Today's NYT Mini Crossword Answers**

      **New York Times**

      **Across**

      - Lack of practice, metaphorically – RUST

      - The width of your thumb, if you need a rough approximation – INCH

      - It has many private entries – DIARY

      - Disc golfer’s obstacle – TREE

      - Emoji that can mean “I’m intrigued” – EYES

      **Down**

      - Dispose (of) – RID

      - Bring together – UNITE

      - Like graveyards at night – SCARY

      - Shortest allowable number of letters for a New York Times crossword answer – THREE

      - “Totally with you!” – YES

      Jesse Lennox has been writing for Digital Trends for over four years and has no intention of stopping. He covers a wide range of topics...

      If you’re a fan of Wordle and Connections, Puzzmo may become your next daily obsession. If you've integrated games like Wordle and Connections into your daily routine recently, you might have another engaging distraction on the horizon. Puzzmo is a new platform that simulates a newspaper puzzle page on a web page that adapts across devices. Players can register for the free platform today, which also offers a $40 annual subscription for unlocking additional features, like experimental games and leaderboards. This ambitious initiative is a collaboration between Orta Therox and game designer Zach Gage, who has garnered attention through mobile games like Knotwords and Good Sudoku. His latest endeavor has been in development for several years and serves as a comprehensive collection of Gage's puzzles, aiming to surpass popular platforms like The New York Times.

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      The New York Times has introduced a new puzzle game following the ongoing success of Wordle, and this one revolves around mathematics. Digits requires players to perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. You can currently play its beta version online for free. In Digits, players must match a target number provided to them using six available numbers through various operations. Not every number needs to be used, which will challenge your math skills as you attempt to create the correct equations that come closest to the target. Players receive a five-star rating for an exact match, a three-star rating if they are within 10 of the target, and a one-star rating if they are within 25. At present, players can also access five different puzzles with progressively larger numbers. I completed today’s puzzle and found it to be an enjoyable numerical challenge, likely to appeal to those who enjoy puzzle games such as Threes or other New York Times titles like Wordle and Spelling Bee. In an article revealing Digits and detailing the development process by The New York Times Games team, it mentions that the team will utilize this free beta to identify bugs and determine if it should proceed to a more active development phase "where the game is coded and the designs are finalized." So enjoy Digits while it’s available, as The New York Times may discontinue it if the response isn't as anticipated. Digits’ beta is currently free to play on The New York Times Games website.

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      Reflecting on Wordle’s impressive year: The New York Times breaks down the phenomenon’s major moments of 2022. If you logged onto Twitter exactly one year ago, you likely remember when your feed was dominated by gray, yellow, and green boxes. Although it debuted in 2021 and rose to fame in December of that same year, Wordle suddenly became a cultural sensation in early 2022, becoming hard to escape unless you muted certain words. It was an uncommon success story in gaming, reaching a wide audience due to its simple elegance. Wordle’s popularity surged just as quickly as its user base. In late January 2022, the New York Times announced its acquisition of the puzzle game from creator Josh Wardle for an undisclosed sum in the low seven figures—a surprising move that nearly overshadowed Sony’s announcement about acquiring Destiny 2 developer Bungie just hours earlier. This shift incited apprehension among fans, who worried that a corporate takeover of such an independent game might compromise its integrity.

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