Minesweeper

About Minesweeper

Minesweeper is the classic logic puzzle game that came with every Windows PC. Click cells to reveal numbers that tell you how many mines are adjacent. Use logic to deduce which cells are safe and flag the mines. Free to play online!

History of Minesweeper

Minesweeper's origins trace back to the 1960s mainframe game "Cube," but the version known worldwide was created by Robert Donner and Curt Johnson for Microsoft Windows 3.1 in 1992. Microsoft included Minesweeper to teach users how to left-click and right-click with a mouse, which was still a novel input device for many PC users at the time. The game became one of the most played computer games in history simply because it was pre-installed on virtually every Windows PC for over two decades. A competitive Minesweeper community emerged with its own world rankings, and the game was eventually replaced by Microsoft Minesweeper (with ads) in Windows 8.

Minesweeper Tips & Strategies

• 💡Start by clicking near the center of the board for the best chance of opening a large area on your first click.
• 💡When you see a "1" next to a single unrevealed cell, that cell is definitely a mine; flag it immediately.
• 💡Use the "1-2-1" and "1-1" patterns along edges to quickly identify safe cells and mines without deep analysis.
• 💡If a number already has all its adjacent mines flagged, click the number to auto-reveal all remaining adjacent cells (chord click).
• 💡When stuck, look at the board edges and corners where cells have fewer neighbors and patterns are easier to read.
• 💡On Expert difficulty, accept that some endgame situations require a 50/50 guess; choose your guess early when it still provides useful information.

Fun Facts About Minesweeper

• ★The world record for Expert Minesweeper (99 mines on a 30x16 grid) is under 30 seconds, achieved by competitive speed players.
• ★Microsoft originally included Minesweeper in Windows to help users learn mouse skills, especially right-clicking.
• ★Minesweeper was removed from default Windows installations starting with Windows 8, replaced by a free-to-play version with advertisements.
• ★Competitive Minesweeper has an international ranking system at minesweeper.info where thousands of players submit verified times.

How to Play Minesweeper

1. 1Left-click a cell to reveal it
2. 2Numbers show how many mines are in the 8 surrounding cells
3. 3Right-click to flag a cell you think contains a mine
4. 4Use logic to figure out which cells are safe to click
5. 5Reveal all non-mine cells to win the game!

Frequently Asked Questions about Minesweeper