Ascent FAQ

Everything people ask about Ascent, the daily word game where rare answers climb Everest.

What is Ascent?

Ascent is a free daily word game played in a web browser at climbascent.com. Every day all players get the same seven prompts, such as "Name a pizza topping". You score more for answers that fewer other players give, and your score is shown as how high you climbed up Mount Everest.

How do you play Ascent?

Read each prompt and type one valid answer within 25 seconds. Wrong answers cost 3 seconds. The rarer your answer among other players that day, the more points you get. After seven rounds you see your altitude, your rank and a share card.

Is Ascent free?

Yes. The daily climb, practice mode and leaderboards are free, with no ads and no account. An optional Archive Pass (US$1 a month) will let players climb days they missed.

What time does the new Ascent puzzle come out?

A new climb starts every day at 00:00 UTC, which is 5:30 am in India, 4:00 am in Dubai, 8:00 am in Singapore and the previous evening in New York (7 or 8 pm, depending on daylight saving).

How is rarity calculated in Ascent?

Each answer is compared with every other answer given to the same prompt. If most players said it, it's worth 10 points. If almost nobody said it, it's worth up to 100. Before many people have played, Ascent uses an estimate built from its answer bank, then real player data takes over.

Is Ascent like Krillion or Wordle?

Ascent is a daily game like Wordle, with one puzzle a day that everyone shares. Like Krillion, it rewards rare answers rather than correct ones. It adds an Everest climb with 12 real checkpoints, permanent climber names, daily, weekly and all-time leaderboards, and an Everest award for the day's top climber.

What are the Everest checkpoints?

Ascent follows the real South Col route: Tent City (Base Camp, 5,364 m), The Ladder Maze (Khumbu Icefall, 5,700 m), Crevasse City (Camp I, 6,065 m), Valley of Silence (Camp II, 6,400 m), The Blue Ice Wall (Lhotse Face, 6,800 m), Cliffhanger Camp (Camp III, 7,160 m), The Golden Stripe (Yellow Band, 7,500 m), The Swiss Rib (Geneva Spur, 7,800 m), The Death Zone (South Col, 7,950 m), Sunrise Ledge (The Balcony, 8,400 m), The False Peak (South Summit, 8,749 m), Hillary's Step (Hillary Step, 8,790 m). The summit is 8,849 m.

What is the Everest award?

The player with the highest altitude on a given day wins that day's Everest award. Rankings are final at 00:00 UTC, and players see their final rank the next time they open Ascent.

Can I play Ascent with my class or team?

Yes. Everyone gets the same prompts, so a class, a study group or an office team can play at the same time and compare altitudes. Rope teams give your group its own private leaderboard. Prompts are general knowledge, pop culture and everyday topics, and suitable for teens and adults.

Can I play past Ascent puzzles?

Missed days stay missed by default, which keeps streaks meaningful. Players with the optional Archive Pass can climb any past day since launch. You can always see yesterday's prompts and top answers on the Yesterday's answers page.

Is there an Ascent app?

Ascent works in any phone or computer browser, and you can add it to your home screen like an app. Android and iPhone apps are planned.

How many prompts and answers does Ascent have?

Ascent has 107 daily prompts and about 22,000 accepted answers across all its prompts, covering music, sport, brands, places, screen and gaming, everyday life and twist prompts. A prompt rests for at least nine days before it returns.