How to Play
The Beginner board is a 9 by 9 grid hiding 10 mines. Open a cell and it shows a number: how many of the eight cells around it hold a mine. A cell with no mines around it opens its whole empty neighborhood at once, which is how a game gets going.
Use the numbers to work out where the mines are, and mark each one with a flag: right click on a computer; on a phone, hold your finger on the cell or switch on the Flag button and tap. Once a number has all its mines flagged, click or tap it to open every other cell around it in one go. Open every safe cell to win.
Rules
- In a New Game your first click is always safe and always opens an empty area; the mines are laid after it.
- The Daily Challenge is the same board for everyone and never needs a guess. Its start cell is marked, and the game opens from there.
- Opening a mine ends the game. There is no undo.
- The counter shows the mines minus your flags; the clock runs from Start.
- Only the Daily Challenge is ranked, by time, and only your first try each day counts.
Tips & Strategy
Start with the ones
A 1 touching a single closed cell has found its mine. Flag it, then look at the numbers around it: many of them are now satisfied and the rest of their neighbors are safe.
Read pairs along an edge
Two 1s side by side on a straight edge often share one mine. The cell only the second 1 touches is then safe, which is the most common way to push forward on a small board.
Flag only what you need
On a board this small, speed comes from opening cells, not marking them. Flag a mine when it lets you chord a number, and skip the rest.
FAQ
What does a number mean?
It's the count of mines in the eight cells touching it, including diagonals. A blank opened cell has none, so the game opens its neighbors for you.
Can I lose on the first click?
Never in a New Game: the mines are placed only after that click, away from it. In the Daily Challenge you begin on the marked cell, which is always empty.
How are Daily Challenge times checked?
Your moves and their times are sent to the server, which rebuilds today's board, replays them, and measures the time itself. Clears faster than record-level speed for the board's size are rejected.