The Verge’s senior editor Tom Warren discovered after unboxing the Surface Laptop Studio 2 that Microsoft was prompting users to play a modern version of the SkiFree game when installing OS updates.
A Familiar Easter Egg
Warren believes it’s the same secret surfing game that Microsoft added to its Edge browser three years ago, a fun little Easter egg that’s very similar to the skiing game SkiFree that was released as part of Microsoft Entertainment Pack 3 for Windows back in 1991.
A Welcome Entertainment Addition
Apparently, the option to have fun with the game appears when there are major Windows updates or if the user is restoring settings from a Windows backup. It’s unclear whether this offer is limited to new Surface devices or if Microsoft has added the game to the Windows 11 installation process. The company has not yet responded to a journalist’s request.
Over the past years, Microsoft has made installing Windows more modern and easier with each new version of the OS, notes NIX Solutions. Experienced users should remember how unfriendly this process used to be, during the “youth” of Windows. Adding a little entertainment to help alleviate the few minutes of waiting while installing updates seems like a good move on Microsoft’s part.