Apple is expanding its gaming portfolio within Apple News+ by introducing a new emoji-based word puzzle. In the game, players must complete words by dragging the correct emoji into the blank spaces, adding a new twist to traditional guess-the-word challenges. The gameplay is simple: users are presented with partially completed words containing empty spaces, alongside a selection of emojis. They must then identify the emoji that best completes each word. For example, to complete the word 'disappear', players would drag a pear emoji into the blank space, and the same pear emoji could also be used for words like 'fruitful'. The emoji game joins the existing collection of puzzle games on Apple News+, which already includes options such as crosswords, quartiles and sudoku. This new addition reflects Apple's strategy to enhance the value of its news subscription service by offering exclusive gaming content. This approach has been highly successful for other publishers, such as The New York Times, whose subscription-based gaming app has a user base in the tens of millions and is a global sensation. As a part of this strategy, the New York TImes spent 4.8 billion dollars in 2022 to buy the popular word game Wordle. However, unlike The New York Times’ app, which is available worldwide, Apple’s new game will be tied to the £9.99/$12.99 Apple News+ subscription, which is still only available in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.