Mine sweeper
Let’s start a 4Play Plus game by paying the machine. The playboard changes, we see a mine sweeper game. We get already 3 tiles for free. The goal of the game is clicking as many tiles that have no bomb on it. When we click a tile that has a bomb the mine sweeper part of the game is finished.

With each tile you click, that does not contain a bomb, you earn a wild. These wilds you will need in the second phase of the game.

As we already got 3 tiles at the start, we see near the bottom of the game that we have 3 wilds collected and there are 7 remaining (from the total of 10 wilds).

The numbers shown in the revealed tiles are the number of bombs in the tiles that are next to the tile showing the number.

So, e.g. due to the tile showing a 1 we know that 1 of the tiles bordering this tile contains a bomb, and only 1. I marked these tiles with a red star in the image below.

I clicked the tile in the lower right corner. It shows that it has 0 bombs on the bordering tiles.

Because that makes it a sure fact that the tile above it can be clicked safe, this one gets also revealed. It again has 0 bombs bordering it, so also the tile above that one gets revealed.

It goes pretty good, we have already 7 wilds. Three left to go.
This also indicates that the remaining 9 empty tiles contain 6 bombs.

Puzzling with all the info we have, we find 4 tiles on the board that surely contain a bomb, 3 tiles of which 1 contains a bomb and 2 other tiles of which one contains a bomb.
You can find all 4 of which it is 100% sure they contain a bomb? No? Puzzle till you can!! Getting good at mine sweeper is pretty essential for getting good at 4Play Plus.

It seems wise to go for one of the 3 tiles of which only 1 contains a bomb. We can still run onto that bomb (33% chance) but these 3 tiles give the best odds.

We click the tile in the lower left corner.

We had 66% chance on a wild and 33% chance on a bomb. It turned out well, we got a wild.

And we got more info, from the 8 remaining tiles:
– For 5 tiles we surely know they contain a bomb.
– For 1 tile we surely know it contains a wild.
– For 2 tiles we know one contains a wild, and one not. But not which one.

And then, after the mine sweeping is done, the real game begins. As you see we get get a play board filled with numbers, and below these numbers a bonus. Below the board you see a spinner, with numbers that you could match on the main board. The top side of the spinner contains buttons that would trigger a wild.

Above the board you see that we need to beat a score of 51901, the score we collected already is 0 and that we are in the first round.

Below the board you see I have 8 wilds left (Wasn’t that 10?? Yes, but I did not play the minesweeper game as good as I could, so I ended up with 8 wilds)

We see that we have the numbers 30 and 37 that that can make a match. Later in the game it might be wise to make matches in a specific order or even not play a match. In the beginning of the game it is not.

Let’s click 30 and 37 and then click the spinner to go to the next round.

With matching 30 and 37 we gained 100 points for each match. Thus, we start the next round with 200 points.


Tile match      100 points
Line match      500 points
Fill the board   2500 points

With only 16 tiles, 10 lines and 1 board available, the total score that can be gained with this is 9100. Not even close to enough when needing 51901. We want bonuses!! Multipliers!!

In the lower left corners of each tile is a bonus. These are either multipliers, extra points, an extra game round or an extra wild. Near the beginning of the game I am mostly interested in multipliers. Getting a multiplier will multiply all score made from that moment on with 2, getting a second multiplier means all wll be multiplied with 3, and the third multiplier makes it x4.

At this round, the 3rd round already, I can match 23 and 38. I do so.

After I click on the smiley at the top side of the spinner, a smiley (these are the wilds) will appear in the spinner at the column where I clicked. I used one wild, so as you see, I no longer have 8 wilds remaining, but only 7.

Since we can get bonus points and multipliers, I am aiming on a few multipliers first. I can get the bonus points later, when they’ll be multiplied. And, I want also my score for completing lines and tiles multiplied.

With the wild I can collect a bonus in the column above it or match a tile in the same column. There is no bonus to collect. I use the wild so I can match the number 10.

After matching 10 I use 2 more wilds, on the second and third column. I will match the numbers 19 and 27. My goal is to assure I can gain the multiplier in the lower left corner and that in the upper right corner.

After I am done I still don’t have a multiplier, but I’ll go to the next round anyways.

When one completes a line, one gets a bonus. That is the first bonus available on that line from top to bottom, or in case of a row, from left to right. So if I used another wild I could place it on 32 or 39 and get myself a multiplier. I try to save myself a multiplier by hoping I will get 32 or 39 in the next round. If not I don’t loose anything, I can still use the wild. Otherwise I saved myself one of the 5 remaining wilds.

It all might start seem a complicated game already, but it also isn’t rocket science. All one one needs to do is to play a few games to get used to it.

Yay, at the next round we get 32 to match.
That plan worked !!
We also get 1.

I best first match 32. It will give the multiplier and then 1. So that the 100 points I get for matching 1 will already be multiplied by 2.
If I first match 1 and then 32, I ain’t having a multiplier yet.

** Blushes ** But I did something else, I matched 32 and clicked the spinner to go to the next round. I overlooked the 1, I missed a number.

Missing a number can easily cost the game. I better play more cautious if I actually want a chance to win the game.
Damn it !!

We see a red 2X sign, showing I did conquer the first multiplier. All score I make from now on will be multiplied by 2.

The score we have is 1500, that is the 800 we did already get, plus 100 for matching a tile, plus 500 for matching a line (the diagonal). This 100 and 500 were not multiplied with 2 already. The multiplier was given directly after matching the tile and line.

We are in the 5th round and it is a pretty useless round. I can’t match a single number. Nothing!!

This is not so strange as while the game makes progress there are less possible matches. From the 16 tiles available, 9 are already matched. Which is again something you should take into consideration when using wilds, matching a number with a wild will take away the possibility that you could match it without having to use a wild in a later round.

Earlier on we saw an example of that where we first waited to see what we would get in the next round, before spending another wild.

Anyways, nothing to match this round, let’s move on to the next one.

Let’s learn from our previous mistakes and make that match.

I again don’t use any wild. I only have 5 wilds left and I do have a plan involving another multiplier and the 10K and 3K bonuses but patience will pay off. I am careful using bonuses where they could be not needed.

The plan is simple: 13K at a X3 multiplier is 39000 points, completing also the entire board and thus also all rows and columns is enough to win the game. So I know what I have to do, but my wilds are scarce.

The 7th round brings no matches. I still need 2 matches for my plan to work.

I would have 1 wild remaining but I also will earn a bonus wild, as you can see at the tile containing number 2. The bonus for a row is the first one at the left side, so it would be a sure thing that I get that bonus.

So I would end up with 2 wilds remaining after completing the board, these are enough to collect the 10K and 3K bonus.

I must also keep an eye on that I will get that 3K bonus. When I match the diagonal it is on I will get the top most bonus available. So, I must make sure the top most bonus (500 points at the tile containing a 1) is already gone by then. I can do so by matching the top row or the left column before I match the diagonal.

It is a great plan, it will work, but I need a few matches first. On to the next round.

Yess!!!

Holly sweet mother of goodness, there it is. Justice after all. I needed two matches, I’ll get three.

Only two possibilities now: It either was total crap I was writing till so far, or I’ll win this game!!!.

I must make sure to play the 2 before I play the 16. Or, even better, match 39 first with a wild. Not that the last is needed, I’ll win also without it. So I don't bother.

Happily pre-ejoying my sure win, I click the 2, 16 and 28 and give the spinner another roll.

Ok, this is round 11 out of 12. I should act now because I need one more round in order to collect the 10K bonus which I can earn this round.

Although, the extra round could still give an escape.

So, I do what I have to do. A wild in the 4th column, clearing the board, revealing the 3X multiplier and the 10K bonus at last.

The last round.


I won.

Tip You don’t have all the time in the world to analyze the play board. A round lasts 30 seconds. But in most cases all you do in the first rounds, is match the numbers. You don’t have to click the spinner to move to the next round, you can also use the time to analyze the board and see which lines have to be matched first.

Something about the order of bonuses, they are given whatever bonus is first, on that specific line, from top to bottom or from left to right
– 7 can be collected by just matching a line, doesn’t matter in what order.
– 3 can be collected by making sure first another line is completed. So you need two lines in a particular order.
– 2 can be collecting making sure first 4 other lines are completed.
– 4 cannot be reached at all.

This is every time the same, so you don’t have to puzzle much about it. Use the picture below instead. The 7 easy tiles are green, the 3 harder ones yellow, the 2 very hard ones red and the 4 impossible ones black.