[nghst]

"[Free, open-source software] is why we can't have nice things" ...?

2048 exploded because anyone could modify it, create a doge version, create an AI version, a multiplayer version, an inverted version ...

And they did. The formula was ridiculously simple, so it was easy to do.

You can't do that with Threes. It's proprietary. You can't take it apart. You can't mess around with it. The only thing you can do with it is play Threes.

[danielweber]

The very first post of 2048 made the #1 spot on HN, before people started modding it.

My son has 2048 on his Ipod without me mentioning it to him, and he never ever gave one hoot about being able to modify it.

[ebrenes]

And it exploded just for those reasons. I sent the link around my company to all the gamers and pretty quickly I saw it crop up on everyone's screen.

The same can't be said for Three's, because there is greater resistance in spreading it and people trying it out. First, I probably wouldn't have tried Threes. Second, I wouldn't have been able to link it easily to people who might have been partially interested in it. Third, the variants and mods were what kept people coming back.

[izzydata]

What exactly is your circumstantial evidence supporting here?

[Sae5waip]

That maybe nghst should take a step back from HN and consider that normal people may find the original 2048 fun and may not care about its variants at all.

Giving an example is a perfectly valid way to make a point. Circumstantial doesn't mean wrong.