For me, Zynga's Scrabble-like, turn-based crossword game, Words With Friends (free), is an essential app on any mobile platform. Call it a time-killer, but nothing is more relaxing than finding words that score you maximum points, and the app is a low-friction way to stay in touch with pals. Sure, you could play it inside a Web browser tuned to Facebook, but having an actual Words With Friends app provides a better experience, with conveniences like notifications and touch-friendliness. The appearance of an official app for the king of word games makes getting a Windows 8.1 tablet that much more appealing.

Getting Started

Words With Friends for Windows 8.1 runs on both x86 and ARM-based PCs and tablets. As with all modern apps, you get the free app from the Windows Store, where it's a modest 6.4MB download. I installed the casual game on a spiffy Microsoft Surface Pro 3.

Setting up an account is a simple matter of either okaying a Facebook login or signing up with an email address. If you choose the former, finding friends to play against is a cinch, especially if you've connected your Facebook account; alternatively, you can look up contacts to play with or obtain a random opponent on the Internet.

Once you've played for a while, the game can match you to players of a similar skill level. And your games are all synced among any devices you play on—phones, tablets, and desktops. When you install this version of the app, existing games you're in the middle of on other devices appear.

If you don't have time to complete a full game, you can simply take a turn whenever you do have time; there's no pressure to move, unless your opponent becomes impatient. In those cases, the app offers a Nudge button, which sends a tardy player a notification to get on the ball.

Game Interface

I really like the layout of the tablet game. The home screen shows tiles for your ongoing games, with those in which it's your move on the left, the opponent's move to its right, followed by completed games and a leaderboard. The game board is also designed well, with clear, fixed areas showing the last word played and a chat box.

The Windows modern app includes what used to be an extra feature: It shows what your score would be if you made the play when you lay tiles on the board. After all, it's a word game, not a math game!

Ads work the same way they do in the other versions: If sign in with an account for which you've paid for the premium version of the app on any other platform (including Windows Phone), you won't see any ads. The catch is that you can't remove ads if your only Words With Friends app is the Windows one. If you never paid to remove ads, you'll see display ads in the empty areas of the screen, and sometimes you'll even see a video ad after making a move.

Other extras found in the iOS version, such as word strength and seeing which tiles remain in the game bag (things I consider a mild form of cheating) are absent. And oddly, it's also missing the ability to view your or your opponent's profile page, which shows your complete track record of average word point, number of games won, highest score, and more.

Aside from those minor gaps, the Windows 8.1 app gives you everything you need to get your Words With Friends fix. There's even a Pass and Play mode, where you play against an opponent with you in the flesh. Finally, Windows tablet owners can engage in what some of us consider one of the most enjoyable activities mobile devices offer.