Pokémon Shuffle has surpassed one million downloads worldwide in under two weeks, The Pokémon Company proudly announced today.

The news came in a notice on the game itself, with players also getting a free Complexity -1 item.

The 3DS puzzler has courted controversy since its launch though, adhering to a free-to-play model that has oft been criticised as exploitative. The gameplay itself is not dissimilar to contemporary free-to-play hits like Candy Crush (or more accurately, the old DS puzzler Pokémon Trozei). However, upon being downloaded for free, players can only play in limited bursts, and can choose to pay to play for longer periods.

The increments that players can pay in any single transaction range from 89p (which gives you five turns) to £42.99.

With that not-entirely-generous price model, it would be interesting to see how much money the game is actually making, and from which demographic.

Have you been playing Pokémon Shuffle, and have you paid any money on it yet? Drop us a comment below.