Minesweeper
Minesweeper is a logic puzzle hidden under a field of grass. Somewhere beneath the squares are mines. Open every square that is safe without digging up a single mine and you win. Each square you open shows a number telling you how many of its eight neighbours hide a mine, and from those numbers you can work out exactly where the danger is.
How to play
- Your first dig is always safe and always opens an area to start from.
- A number means that many mines touch that square, including diagonally. A blank square has none, so its neighbours open by themselves.
- Plant a flag on any square you are sure is a mine. The counter shows how many mines are still unflagged.
- When a number already has all of its flags around it, tap or click it to open the rest of its neighbours in one go.
- Open every safe square to win. The clock starts with your first move.
Controls
On a phone, the Dig and Flag buttons under the board choose what a tap does. A long press always does the other one, so you can play entirely in Dig mode and long-press to flag. On a computer, left click digs and right click flags. On dense boards use Zoom to make the squares bigger and drag to look around. The smiley face starts a new game.
Difficulties and the daily board
Beginner is 9 by 9 with 10 mines, Intermediate is 16 by 16 with 40, and Expert is 16 by 30 with 99, turned upright on phones so it fits the screen. Every board here is checked before you play: it can be solved by logic alone, so you never lose to a coin flip. The Daily board is the same for everyone, starts already opened, and builds a streak for each day in a row you clear it. Your first try at each daily is the one that counts: replays are practice, so a lost daily can't be retried for the streak. Share your time with friends when you clear it. If you hit a mine you can watch a short ad once per game for a second chance. Your game in progress is saved, so you can close the page and pick it up later, and the clock stops while you are away.
Tips
Start with the easy certainties. A 1 touching only one hidden square means that square is a mine. A number whose mines are all flagged means everything else around it is safe. Then look at neighbouring numbers together: in a row reading 1, 2, 1 along a wall, the mines sit under the two 1s. Work from the edges of the open area inward, flag as you go so chording stays quick, and never rush the last few squares.