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As a long time Windows user, I get the feeling that Microsoft considers Solitaire and Minesweeper as the key differentiators on their platform. You use Windows
by jrockway 2y ago
As a long time Windows user, I get the feeling that Microsoft considers Solitaire and Minesweeper as the key differentiators on their platform. You use Windows to have Solitaire and Minesweeper; not for stability, developer APIs, backwards compatibility, security, etc. Those are all add-ons from the zero-interest-rate days that nobody cares about. Windows is about throwaway games; that's why you buy it instead of a Mac which comes with NO GAMES out of the box.
As a result, this is what every PM wants to rally behind. "Increased revenue on Minesweeper by 4000% QoQ." That is how you become the CEO of Microsoft, probably! So you gotta do it.
Having said that, I have neither Minesweeper nor Solitaire on my Windows 10 Pro install... so... I guess I'm technically incorrect. I do get this feeling that those two games are really what Microsoft sees the PC experience as being. Nobody ever told them that both games are actually super boring, and people only played them because the Internet didn't exist back then and it was better than staring into space while your typewriter warmed up or whatever people did in offices back in the day.
- maxwell 2y ago"Comes with NO GAMES"?? I switched to Mac for Apple Chess. And I was very glad to hear yesterday that they've committed to putting all of their wood behind it going forward.
- jrockway 2y agoHey chess is a sport, not a game!
- tavavex 2y agoThis strikes me as a probably outdated view. If anything, Microsoft has de-emphasized preinstalled games and canned most of them since Windows 8, relegating them to being optional installs from the store. The internet says that the only preinstalled game in Win10/11 is Microsoft Solitaire Collection - but I can't even find that on my Windows 11 Pro install. So, considering macOS Chess, it's a one-for-one in terms of preinstalled games.
- bmicraft 2y agoIt strikes me as sarcasm
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- dogline 2y agoAt first this sounds a bit tongue-in-cheek, but the more I think about this, it might be an actual Project Management Milestone, and it's one bone they can throw to the users, where the rest of the time it's marketing towards the IT department.
- _DeadFred_ 2y agoThese games were originally added to familiarize users with using a mouse in as non-intimidating and fun user friendly of a way as possible. Garbaging that up is the exact opposite of their original purpose.