Editor’s Note: Gazette adds a new crossword to daily games page

Over the past few weeks, hundreds of you have shared opinions about the daily crossword puzzle.

A retirement of a crossword puzzle editor at the beginning of the year didn’t go unnoticed. The new puzzle editor has a different philosophy and approach to puzzle clues, and many of you felt like the skill needed to finish the puzzle increased significantly.

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You shared messages of spending time with the puzzles to keep sharp, or as an activity to do with family members. Many shared frustration about needing to consult Google to answer clues, or not catching the meanings behind some of the clues. And some of the foreign language or inability to complete the puzzles were even infuriating.

But it wasn’t all negative. I also received a lot of notes appreciating a new challenge, more current pop culture references or being pushed to look up things you didn’t know. Many welcomed the challenge and would be upset to lose it.

So we’ve got a solution that I hope works for everyone. First, we’re keeping Commuter Crossword puzzle. Beginning Monday, we’ll be adding a second crossword puzzle to the daily games page Monday through Saturday.

We’re adding the Universal Crossword edited by David Steinberg. Steinberg has participated in a myriad of crossword puzzle projects. His career began at age 15, when he was named crossword editor of The Orange County Register’s 24 associated newspapers. He held the post for more than five years before launching other crossword projects. You can learn more about his projects and editing career on his website www.customcrossword.com.

In preparation for the change, I shared some samples of Steinberg’s puzzles and many of you said you felt it was comparable to the past Commuter Crossword. Please give yourself some time to become accustomed to the editor’s clues.

You’ll notice the layout of the daily games page is a bit different, with some of the games enlarged to make them easier to see. Dear Abby and the daily events calendar will continue to run alongside the various games. Some of the other features that had appeared atop the page will move to other spots in the paper.

I appreciate the time you spent in testing crossword options and sharing your stories, and for giving us a couple weeks to get the layout changes made. I appreciate your continued readership and hope this leads to some happier puzzling going forward.

Best,

Zack Kucharski, Executive Editor