In the Vinaya, we have this, thanks to Ajahn @Brahmali:
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.7: They played various games: eight-row checkers, ten-row checkers, imaginary checkers, hopscotch, spillikins, dice, tip-cat, painting with the hand, ball games, leaf flutes, toy plows, somersaults, toy windmills, toy measures, toy carriages, toy bows, letter guessing, thought guessing, mimicking deformities.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.8: They trained in elephant riding, in horsemanship, in carriage riding, in archery,
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.9: in swordsmanship.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.10: And they ran in front of elephants, horses, and carriages, and they ran backward and forward.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.11: They whistled, clapped their hands, wrestled, and boxed.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.12: They spread their outer robes on a stage and said to the dancing girls,
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.13: “Dance here, Sister,”
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.14: and they made gestures of approval.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.15: And they engaged in many kinds of misbehavior.
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.16: They told the Buddha. Soon afterwards he gave a teaching and addressed the monks:
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.17: “You should not engage in various kinds of misbehavior
pli-tv-kd15:36.1.18: If you do, you should be dealt with according to the rule.”
What is interesting is that the Buddha cautions against misbehavior, not games. The question then arises, “how do games allow misbehavior?”
Games often have winners and losers. For example, boxing and dice mentioned above both foster attachment to gain and loss. They foster craving for gain.
Other games focus on sensual pleasures (e.g., “Dance here, Sister”.) Such games encourage misbehavior.
And while many games foster misbehavior, others foster learning. When I listen to DN34, I play a game. I listen to the Pali first. And then I hear the English translation. The game I play is very simple. Can I guess the English?
And now, after more than a year of listening to DN34 as I walk meditation, I can indeed guess the English sometimes. It is very slow work and very important work. That is not misbehavior. That is an opportunity for freedom. Indeed, it falls under the third opportunity for freedom.
DN34:1.6.86: Furthermore, it may be that neither the Teacher nor … the mendicant teaches Dhamma. But the mendicant recites the teaching in detail as they learned and memorized it.
DN34:1.6.87: That mendicant feels inspired by the meaning and the teaching in that Dhamma, no matter how they recite it in detail as they learned and memorized it.
DN34:1.6.88: Feeling inspired, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, one feels bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed.
DN34:1.6.89: This is the third opportunity for freedom.
Now “letter guessing” is mentioned as a game. So we need to think a bit about this. We do not know what the actual historical game is. Perhaps it was Wordle. However, it is more likely that ancient game was simpler, “Guess what letter I am thinking”. And here we can infer that guessing the letter someone else is thinking is likely nonsense that does not lead to freedom.
Because the Buddha has not specified whether Wordle is or is not misbehavior, we need to think carefully about why one would play such a game. And after some thought, we might realize that such a word game teaches us a foreign language so that we may talk about and listen to the Dhamma. That would be a huge opportunity for learning. Perhaps we would be inclined to treat it as gift to be celebrated!