Little secrets · 02
Five letters. One very small secret.
The smallest hint imaginable: a single pixel, quietly telling you what lay beneath the cursor.
Old Minesweeper cheat guides describe typing XYZZY, followed by additional keys, to enable a tiny black-or-white indicator at the corner of the screen. The accounts differ on the final key sequence and which versions display the pixel.
That is an excellent reason to look at the executable before declaring the exact behavior. We have not done that verification yet. For now, the interesting idea is the mechanism: ordinary keyboard input can quietly change a hidden piece of state.
A tiny input latch.
Try typing XYZZY below, or use the five letter keys. This illustrative latch opens after those letters alone. Once it opens, switch the sample cell to see the enlarged indicator change.
Illustrative mechanism · not original game code
Waiting for five letters.
The indicator is enlarged for this demo. It does not inspect your game.
What we still need to check.
The exact input sequence, the internal state transitions, the pixel coordinates and the version-specific rendering behavior all belong in the verification work. An appealing story is a starting point; the original program is the evidence.
Documentary reading: the Digital Press Minesweeper Easter egg account and a 2003 Minesweeper FAQ. These reports are historical references, not our executable-level verification.