Candy Crush Saga Bundles With Windows 10

Candy Crush Saga will come pre-installed for Windows 10. It's not yet clear how in-game purchases will work in the Windows edition.

The game will be one of four pre-installed games in Windows 10, alongside long-time classics Solitaire Hearts, and Minesweeper. Those three were all made optional downloads in Windows 8 after years of shipping as part of Windows systems, but have now returned as part of the main package.

Candy Crush Saga was already a hit online through Facebook and in Apple and Android apps, with a reported 500 million downloads, before being added to Windows Phone last year. It's inclusion to Windows 10 is a high-profile example of Microsoft's work to make it much easier for developers to make applications that work on phones and computers alike.

Microsoft has confirmed that the game will "automatically be installed for customers that upgrade to or download Windows 10 for periods of time following the game launch." The game release is only confirmed as coming "later this year", so it may not necessarily be included for people who get Windows 10 the moment it's available. (Source: xbox.com)

Candy Crush Cashes In

For those who've managed to avoid it, Candy Crush Saga is somewhat of a cross between Tetris and Connect Four. Players have to create vertical or horizontal lines of three identical icons, each representing a different type of candy. Like most successful 'casual' games, it's simple to play and hard to master -- in fact a test showed that it's in the hardest category when it comes to creating computer programs to figure out the optimum solution for a puzzle or game.

That balance of simplicity and complexity is key to the game's addictive nature, which is in turn vital to its business model. It's free to play, but players only have five lives. Once lost, a life can only be regained by waiting half and hour, interacting on Facebook, or paying a small fee.

While only a little over two percent of players ever pay up, that still makes a tidy sum. King Digital, which makes Candy Crush Saga and other similar games, took in $569.5 million in the first three months of 2015. (Source: theguardian.com)

Windows Payment Set-Up Unclear

Microsoft hasn't confirmed how any in-game payments will work on the Windows edition. It's possible it could involve the same Microsoft Store account through which users can buy downloadable apps. There's also no word on whether either side is paying a fee for the game to be included.

Finances aside, it could be bad news for office productivity. Some workplaces that have Internet-connected computers block sites such as Facebook and ban users from installing software. Now it seems such a move won't be necessary for those wanting their Candy Crush fix.

What's Your Opinion?

Are you a Candy Crush Saga addict? Is Microsoft right to bundle a 'freemium' game with Windows 10? Should Microsoft include any third-party software by default with the upcoming release of Windows 10?