Microsoft will charge a monthly fee to play Solitaire without ads

Thanks in large part to the rise of mobile gaming, microtransactions have become a major part of the gaming world, which is something many of us would like to see change. Further proving that nothing can be free and the corruption of microtransactions is truly inescapable, Microsoft will require users to pay a $1.49/month fee if they want to be able to play Solitare without ads. 

Microsoft Solitaire’s roots date back to 1990 when Windows 3.0 was released. Originally intended to be a free and accessible game that introduces users to how to use the at-the-time revolutionary PC mouse, it was a cultural phenomenon. In 2015, even the most PC-inept are familiar with its addictive mechanics, and estimates state that it has cost America millions of hours of labor during the past two decades. Unfortunately, the world we live in now is not the one we lived in during the 90’s. This is a world dominated by microtransactions and DLC, one that not even the good will of Solitaire can survive in. Many users who have installed Windows 10 today have been flabbergasted by the fact that Solitaire isn’t 100% free to play, and neither is Minesweeper or any of the other games offered by the Microsoft Solitaire Collection. While the games can be played at no cost, ads and popups plague the experience. That is, unless users cough up $1.49/month.