Posted by terabytest 10/24/2024
Even after all these years, that experience still feels a bit surreal to me. I’m deeply grateful to everyone who connected with the game, whether in small or significant ways, and for the stories shared along the way. Some people expressed how they were going through tough times and found some comfort, however small, in playing 2048.
At the start of last year, I wanted to breathe new life into the game as it was starting to show its age. I quit my job last October to work on 2048 full time and spent a year building this new version (the original took just 5 days!). I wanted to pay tribute to what made 2048 great while modernizing and polishing the experience.
The idea of adding powerups came when Prime Gaming and I connected to see if we could create a special version of 2048 for their members, with some exclusive extras. Some of those powerups made it into the main game, though there’s still a Classic[3] mode just like the original for those who prefer a more hardcore experience. The old site is also still online[4].
2048 is now my full-time focus, and I’m excited about the ways it can keep improving. I wanted to share this update with the community where it all began, both for a bit of nostalgia and to hear your thoughts and feedback!
Thank you all so much!
— Gabriele
[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7373566
[2]: https://medium.com/@gabrielecirulli/2048-success-and-me-7dc6...
That's exactly how I remember it, yes.
It started with only the tech people, but then it spread to all coworkers, friends, grandparents...
Anyway, congrats on this game but I won't fall in the same trap as 10 years prior, wasting hours upon hours of productivity!
One day later, did you succeed in that?
2048: 24s
4096: 1m 37s
8192: 4m 53s
16384: 13m 34s
32768: 55m 24sMy one observation is that it didn't feel intellectually engaging until the board was fairly full. Until I got to ~2500 or so, I was just making random-ish moves that felt like they didn't matter much. So it took say 15min before I got to the "good part."
It would be nice if the game could be modified in some way to get to the sweet spot earlier. Maybe starting from a mostly-full "puzzle" board, with varying levels of difficulty.
Or if the early moves actually DO matter more - and my beginner brain just didn't realize it - maybe there's a way to explain that connection to newer players so that they engage their brain earlier on.
Almost feels a bit like chess opening moves, which to a beginner might not feel very impactful, but to an experienced player they can see the connection from that one early pawn move to something meaningful later on in the game.
The new powerups etc. are nice for removing a mistake, or for letting you get a score a little bit higher at the end game, but won't take you the distance unless you have good technique.
A big part of the magic is getting your head round it - like any other logic puzzle.
I'm curious what you mean by "the trick"!
@Terabytes glad to see your work, the new release is really nice
On a sidenote: it's been years, but anyone else slightly annoyed that the "Out of Moves" text is still not centered?