Classic Cheat Code: Typing XYZZY as described under Easter Egg.This was done to alleviate controversy about the game trivializing land mines in regions where unexploded mines from past wars still kill innocent people every year, though some still wanted the game to be banned altogether. The Vista/7 version has an option to switch between mines and flowers, with the default depending on the region.
Bowdlerise: Starting in Windows 2000, some regions (such as Italy) changed the game into "Flower Field" with the mines replaced with flowers.Bomb Disposal: The goal is to isolate mines without setting them off.A Winner Is You: If you win in the original versions, all you get is a cheery tune and the smiley wearing Cool Shades.
This was a deliberate design choice, as according to the main developer, some board layouts and game variants featured within can become so Nintendo Hard that even the average experienced player would not be able to do a No-Damage Run a la traditional Minesweeper. Uncovering a mine no longer leads to an instant Game Over but instead adds a penalty to the in-game clock when the game ends after all non-mine tiles are uncovered, the exact amount of time being shown on the sidebar. Super Minesweeper introduces a "Damage" mechanic.Naturally, this is turned off when you replay the same layout.
Vista and Windows 7 tweak this some more so not only is the first square empty, so are all the adjacent squares. The grid is randomized before your first click, and if that first click happens to be on a mine, it will either randomize the board again (non-Windows versions) or move the mine to the top right corner (Windows versions).