Minesweeper stops being random the moment one sentence clicks: every number tells you exactly how many mines touch that square, including diagonals. Everything else is deduction. Here are the rules, the controls, and the handful of patterns that turn guessing into solving.
The Rules
- The board hides mines under a grid of squares.
- Left-click reveals a square. Reveal a mine, game over.
- A revealed number (1-8) counts the mines in its eight surrounding squares.
- A revealed blank has zero neighboring mines, and the game auto-clears outward until it hits numbers: the satisfying flood-open.
- Win by revealing every safe square (flagging mines is bookkeeping, not the win condition).
- Your first click is always safe in modern versions; open anywhere.
The Controls
- Left-click: reveal
- Right-click: place a flag on a suspected mine (right-click again for a “?” or to clear, depending on version)
- Both buttons together (or middle-click) on a number: chording; if the number already has its full count of flags around it, this reveals all its other neighbors at once. Chording is the speed technique, and also the fastest way to die with a wrong flag.
The Logic That Wins
Three deductions cover most of the game:
- A number touching exactly that many unrevealed squares means they’re ALL mines. A “2” with only two hidden neighbors: flag both.
- A number already touching its full count of flags means every other neighbor is safe. A “1” with one flag placed: open everything else around it freely.
- The 1-2-1 pattern: along a wall of unrevealed squares, 1-2-1 means the mines sit under the 1s’ outer squares, and the square over the 2 is safe. Its cousin 1-2-2-1 puts mines under the middle two. Learn these two shapes and mid-game walls fall apart.
When true guesses remain (they occasionally do, even played perfectly), prefer squares touching the fewest numbers, and corners over edges statistically.
Playing It Today
Minesweeper ships free as Microsoft Minesweeper on Windows (Microsoft Store), and faithful versions run in every browser; the classic difficulty tiers are Beginner (9×9, 10 mines), Intermediate (16×16, 40), and Expert (30×16, 99). Expert under 100 seconds is the traditional “I have wasted my office years well” badge.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to flag mines? No; flags are memory aids and chording fuel. Elite players often play “no flag” for speed.
Is every board solvable without guessing? Not guaranteed in the classic game; some versions offer a “no guess” mode that promises pure logic.
What happens on a wrong chord? It reveals a mine your bad flag was hiding; chording is only as safe as your flags are honest.
Why did my first click open half the board? You hit a zero region; the flood-open is the game handing you a head start.