How to play Minesweeper

Minesweeper is a classic computer game that was popularized in the 1990s by Microsoft through its inclusion as a built-in extra in Windows. It was possibly based on a game called Mined-Out invented by Ian Andrew in 1983.

The gameplay of Minesweeper could be called deceptively simple. It consists of a grid of concealed squares. You click on the squares one at a time to reveal what is under each one — a mine, a number indicating how many mines are in the surrounding squares, or nothing at all. Clicking on a mine ends the game — you only get one life in Minesweeper. Winning the game involves using the numbered squares to deduce where the mines are, and marking them, while exposing all the other squares.

There is more than one Minesweeper game, but we are going to stick with the current version of Minesweeper. While some people play competitively (check out https://www.get-minesweeper.com), for most, it’s just a fun distraction. Either way, let’s go over how to play Minesweeper.

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