• by Danielle Oster , November 18, 2024

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The New York Times releases “Puzzle Mania” annually as a special section in the print edition of the Sunday paper, featuring an expanded offerings of its games -- including a mega-sized crossword puzzle, as well as other word games, Sudoku, and visual puzzles. For the tenth anniversary of the special release, New York Times Games is extending its availability to give puzzle lovers more time to get their hands on the puzzle-filled pages.

Puzzle lovers can pre-order “Puzzle Mania” via The New York Times Store through Dec. 1, an earlier release date for the issue than in prior years. “Puzzle Mania” has also been expanded, stuffed with over 50 games, marking a new record. The section will be centered around a “light food theme” this year, befitting its release around the Thanksgiving holiday, and include adaptations of popular games like Connections and Wordle --  as well as a “Cryptic Crossword” four times as large as the daily crossword puzzle.

The campaign also includes free giveaways to puzzle lovers in locations where it’s harder to track down a print copy of the paper -- such as Hana, Hawaii, (which can only be accessed by navigating winding roads and single-lane bridges), and  North Pole, Alaska (a small city in the wilderness that attracts tourists with a year-round holiday theme).

In addition to these more remote destinations, the publication will also be handing out copies in its hometown and other more populous cities this December, including: Atlanta, Chicago and Los Angeles.

A blog post from the Times alludes to the upcoming drops around locations where fans gather for meals – noting spots such as “ N.Y.C.’s Golden Diner and Montague Diner, Chicago’s Loaf Lounge, Atlanta’s Bomb Biscuit, L.A.’s République and Mel’s Drive-In” – as well as vendors at travel hubs like Grand Central Terminal’s Cafe Grumpy and Penn Station’s Vesuvio Bakery. The publication will offer free copies at local public libraries, and educational institutions that offer a New York Times group subscription.

There’s also an activation to drive New York Times Games subscriptions. Game lovers who purchase a games-only subscription from Nov. 25-Dec. 2 will be given a code to receive a copy of “Puzzle Mania” from the New York Times Store for free.