Mobile gaming has become a daily habit for millions, and few titles illustrate that longevity better than Candy Crush Saga. Launched in 2012, the puzzle-match game has amassed more than 20,000 levels, with fresh challenges added each week to keep the experience fresh. Its simple swipe mechanic masks a surprisingly deep progression system, and the title continues to generate community buzz, high-score races, and even official record attempts years after its debut.
King’s workforce sets a Guinness World Record with Candy Crush Saga
On 7 October 2026, the Barcelona office of King gathered 1,146 employees for a coordinated five-minute marathon of Candy Crush Saga. The session was officially monitored by Guinness World Records adjudicator Richard Stenning, who confirmed that the simultaneous play met the stringent criteria for the new category “most people playing a mobile game simultaneously”. Participants logged in on individual devices, all connected to the same Wi-Fi network, and maintained continuous gameplay for exactly five minutes, securing the title and earning a place in the record books.
The coordinated five-minute play session
Organisers distributed tablets and smartphones across several floor sections, ensuring every employee could access the game without lag. Technical staff calibrated the network to handle the unusual traffic load, while volunteers tracked start and stop times with a synchronized clock. The effort highlighted King’s internal culture: more than 25,000 levels exist in the game, with roughly 60 fresh puzzles released each week, offering endless variety for such a mass-play experiment. The simultaneity of the attempt demonstrated how a single title can unite a large, diverse workforce around a shared, playful goal.
Leadership comments and significance
Todd Green, President of King, summed up the mood: “Mobile games put fun in people’s hands every day, all over the world. So with 1,146 Kingsters in one place, we thought: why just play Candy Crush Saga when we could break a world record doing it?” He added that the record symbolizes the “community spirit” that fuels the company’s ongoing success. Richard Stenning echoed the sentiment, noting that the energy in the room was “fantastic” and that the achievement “celebrates extraordinary teamwork and the enduring appeal of a simple, accessible game.” The record serves as both a marketing milestone and an internal morale booster.
Teen from Bihar earns International Book of Records title for Candy Crush level 22,222
Just weeks after King’s corporate feat, 19-year-old Shubham Kumar from Dighwara, Bihar, was listed in the International Book of Records for the “Highest Level Achieved in Candy Crush Saga (Teenager)”. The organization recorded the accomplishment on 5 July 2026, when Kumar, aged 19 years, 8 months and 25 days, reached level 22,222. The record acknowledges the sheer persistence required to climb a ladder that expands beyond 20,000 levels, each demanding new strategies and candy-matching skills.
Climbing the endless ladder of levels
The gameplay of Candy Crush involves swapping adjacent candies to create chains of three or more identical pieces, while also satisfying specific objectives such as clearing jelly or collecting ingredients. As players progress, the board introduces blockers, limited moves, and time constraints that amplify difficulty. Kumar’s journey to level 22,222 required navigating these escalating hurdles, often after countless attempts on particularly stubborn stages. Although he later announced on the official Candy Crush community that he had surpassed the milestone to reach level 23,165, the International Book of Records officially recognizes the 22,222 benchmark as his certified achievement.
Why the record matters for mobile gaming
Kumar’s recognition underscores the global reach of Candy Crush Saga. The game consistently registers around 200 million monthly active users, and its community celebrates high-level milestones, with the official forum noting players hitting level 23,000 in August 2026. Such feats illustrate the title’s capacity to generate long-term engagement, encouraging players to return for new challenges long after the initial download. By honoring both a corporate team and an individual teenager, the two record events highlight how a single mobile puzzle can bridge professional environments and personal passion, reinforcing King’s mission to “make the world playful.”
