Noughts and crosses, plus a nine-board Ultimate mode. Play Tic Tac Toe free as a 2 player game on one phone or vs the computer. Choose the classic 3x3 grid or Ultimate, with nine boards in one.
How to play
Two players take turns marking squares. Red plays X and goes first, Blue plays O. Get three of your marks in a row, across, down or diagonally, before your rival does. Tap a square to place your mark; it draws itself on with a bold stroke in your colour. On a computer you can also click, press the number keys 1 to 9 in the classic game, or use the arrow keys and Space.
Both players can share one phone, or you can tap the second seat on the setup screen to switch it to CPU and play vs computer. Each side also carries a shape (circle or square) beside its name, so the two players are easy to tell apart without relying on colour.
Classic board
The familiar 3 by 3 grid. If all nine squares fill up and nobody has a line, the game is a draw. The computer has three levels:
- Easy plays mostly at random, but will take a win or a block if it spots one.
- Normal plays a strong game and only slips now and then.
- Hard never makes a mistake. You can’t beat it, so a draw is a great result.
Ultimate board
Ultimate is a full game of tic tac toe made of nine small boards. The twist is where you are allowed to play:
- Your move sends your rival. The square you pick inside a small board decides which small board they must play in next. If you take the top-right square, they play in the top-right board.
- Won or full boards. If you send your rival to a board that has already been won or filled up, they may play in any open board instead.
- Win small boards. Three in a row inside a small board claims that whole board with a big X or O. A full board with no line is a draw and counts for nobody.
- Win the game. Claim three small boards in a row on the big board. If every board is decided and nobody has a line, the game is a draw.
The board or boards where you may play glow in the current player’s colour, and the other boards fade a little. A small dot marks the last move. The computer levels work the same way, searching more moves ahead as you raise the level, and it always answers quickly.
Tips
- Think about where you send your rival. In Ultimate, the best square is often the one that lands them in a board where they can do little harm.
- Avoid giving a free move. Sending a rival to a decided board lets them play anywhere, which is usually a gift.
- Take the centre. In the classic game, the middle square is part of four lines, and a corner opening is strong too.
- Look for forks. A move that makes two threats at once cannot be blocked.
Why it’s fun
Classic tic tac toe takes seconds to learn and makes a perfect quick duel on a bus or in a queue. Ultimate turns the same simple idea into a proper strategy game with real depth, and a round still only takes a few minutes.