AK

While I would never use the word “cheating” outside of the context of a competition (which individual solving is not), I do think there is value is being judicious about the *way* you look things up to maximize learning and minimize feeling cheated yourself. Usually this means not looking up the exact wording of the clue and finding the answer on a website that publishes crossword answers, but instead doing research *around* the topic of the clue, in an effort to actually learn what you’d need to get to the answer. This may mean taking a few extra moments to read some of a Wikipedia article, browse an IMDB listing, examine a region on a map, or even ask a friend who is knowledgeable on the subject for their take — all in same of learning what you need to solve the clue.

Perhaps my favorite Saturday puzzle ever. Between BOWSER, RPG, and OCARINA it was quickly clear the constructor was a gamer, which bode well for my chances. And as a fellow gamer, it seemed like the constructor and I cliques in more ways than one. Zero kludgey fill, wonderfully tricky clueing, and very little arcane trivia (outside of the Nintendo universe). The puzzle came together quicker than average as ah-ha moments came up at a rapid clip. I get how this puzzle may not be for everyone, but I consider it a masterclass. Well done!

Lots of folks seem to be saying this was overly easy for a Thursday and let me just say … I disagree!!! I struggled quite a bit, perhaps because it took me a while to get the theme. But this was the first Thursday in a while where I felt I really had to work to break it in, and it didn’t start to flow until I’d finally figured out most of the theme answers.