Rules · scoring · guessing
How to play Hooked
A haul is five hidden categories. You have 30 seconds on each. Every accepted answer is a fish, and rarer answers weigh more.
The public rules page lays the day out in nine beats. A new haul opens at midnight in your own timezone, and everyone on that calendar date sees the same five categories. The category stays hidden until its countdown reaches zero. At that point the round starts and you can type answers for the revealed category.
Weight sits on five bands the rules name directly: Minnow about 1 lb, Trout about 2.5 lb, Marlin about 5 lb, Anglerfish about 7.5 lb, and one Kraken at about 10 lb. Two fish in the same band are not identical; the same answer weighs the same for every player. Each category has exactly one Kraken.
Round five is the specialty round. Every fish you land there counts double, which is why a late Anglerfish is worth about 15 lb and a late Kraken about 20 lb. You may reel in early. The timer is a ceiling, not a requirement to wait.
An exact name, or an alias the game already knows, drops straight into the bucket. If the game is unsure, it asks whether you meant a nearby name. Enter accepts that suggestion. Keep typing and the suggestion is ignored. A misspelled answer is not a second fish.
A category comes back only after at least 30 days, and a return brings a twist: a new Kraken, or a 20-second speed round. You cannot quit mid-haul. Refreshing the page moves you to the next round instead of restarting the day. The bobber at the top is the progress marker between rounds.
The results screen shows total weight, the day's rank, your rarest catch, and the accepted answers for each category, with yours highlighted. Crew play holds up to five people. A 1v1 duel uses a 6-character join code, and the friend who joins does not need a pass.
| Catch | Round 1–4 | Round 5 (double) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Minnows | about 3 lb | about 6 lb | Calculation from official weights · 1 source family |
| 3 Anglerfish | about 22.5 lb | about 45 lb | Calculation from official weights · 1 source family |
| 1 Kraken | about 10 lb | about 20 lb | Calculation from official weights · 1 source family |
Questions people ask
When does a new Hooked haul start?
At midnight in the player's local timezone. The same date shares one set of five categories worldwide.
What happens if I refresh?
The official rules say a refresh continues at the next round. It does not restart the haul from category one.
Can I leave and come back?
You cannot quit in the middle of a haul. Progress for the free daily game lives in the browser until you sign in.
Keep reading
Sources
- Official how to play — checked 2026-11-12
- Official FAQ — checked 2026-11-12
- Official about — checked 2026-11-12