Good app, bad puzzles – Crossly Review

I only play this with people I know, who agree to use only their minds as a resource. No looking things up on the internet, in books, or asking other friends. The app works well, but starting a match can be a little finicky. We agree to never use peeks, but the stealing mechanic is fun. All of that is overshadowed by the feeling that the puzzles are simply bad. They seem to be programmatically generated from a database of clues and answers. You end up with puzzles that lack cohesion and are often too difficult due to too much esoterica, rather than being difficult due to cleverness. On top of that, the answers can be poorly constructed and often break NYT crossword conventions.
Review by kccricket on Crossly.