Starting as just a weekend project for Gabriele Cirulli, the 19-year-old Italian was surprised when 2048 received more than four million visitors in less than a week.
Cirulli had created the game in a single weekend as a test to see if he could program a game from scratch.
The game itself is a clone of Veewo Studios’ 1024 app, and Cirulli keeps his version free to play, as he refuses to make bank on something that was not his original idea.
“I loved that it wasn’t some app you had to buy,” sophomore Brianna Steele said.
The game was released on March 9, 2014. The game has also taken off in schools around the nation.
“I found out about it from watching other people play it and looking it up myself eventually,” sophomore Elizabeth Dodd said.
Actually completing 2048 is a different story.
“The first time I tried it I failed miserably and only got to somewhere just over 100,” Steele said.
However, it seems that after reaching 2048 the game loses some of its original drive.
“When I got 2048 I felt so accomplished – like I didn’t have to play anymore – and I don’t,” Dodd said.
All in all, it seems the game is addicting but fun, if pointless at times, though not as mindless as some games.