2048 was created in 2014 by Italian developer Gabriele Cirulli as a weekend JavaScript project. It was inspired by similar games 1024 and Threes!, which had launched shortly before.
After going public, it spread rapidly via social media and racked up millions of plays in its first week. Because Cirulli released it as open source, hundreds of variants appeared and the game was ported to mobile, desktop, and countless other platforms.
A solo weekend project turned global phenomenon, 2048 is one of the most celebrated indie game success stories of the decade.