[1][2][3] In Connections, the goal is to divide a grid of sixteen words into four groups of four such that the words in each group belong to a specific category (e.g., "dog", "cat", "fish", and "parrot" for the category "Household Pets").

[5] When a player successfully identifies a group, its category is revealed along with a color-coded difficulty level: categories are rated yellow, green, blue, or purple, with yellow being the most straightforward and purple being the most difficult.

[7] Connections had been in development for a year before releasing in its beta phase on June 12, 2023.

[10][11][12] On September 24, 2024, The Athletic, in partnership with The New York Times Games, launched a sports edition of Connections in beta.

The sports edition features the same gameplay as the regular version, with each grouping sports-themed.