Five in a Row

How to play Five in a Row

1. Take turns placing one stone on any empty point. Coral goes first, then teal.
2. Make five of your stones in an unbroken line — across, down or diagonally — to win. Six or more in a row counts too.
3. Stones never move and are never captured.
4. If the board fills up with no line of five, the game is a draw.
5. On a phone, tap a point to aim, then tap it again to place your stone. With a mouse, one click places.

Strategy tips

• Start near the middle, where stones can join lines in every direction.
• Block open threes. Three in a row with both ends free becomes an open four next move, and an open four can't be stopped.
• Every turn, ask: can I make five now? If not, does my opponent have four in a row? Block it first.
• Make two threats at once. A four plus an open three, or two fours, can't both be blocked with one stone.
• A four forces a block, so a chain of fours can steer your opponent while you set up a double threat.

Three ways to play

Solo: daily puzzles — a fresh challenge every day, the same for everyone. vs Computer: four characters from Rookie Robo (easy) to Grandmaster Owl (expert); beat each one to earn its star. vs Friend: pass the device, or send an invite link and play online — no account needed.

Variants

Play on an 11×11 board (great on phones, quicker games) or the classic 15×15 tournament board. We use freestyle rules: five or more in a row wins, with no forbidden moves. Solo has five new "win in 2" puzzles every day on the 11×11 board.

About Five in a Row

Five in a Row is best known by its Japanese name, Gomoku, from gomokunarabe — roughly "five stones in a line". In Japan it has long been played with the black and white stones of Go on a Go board, and it reached Britain in the late 1800s as Go-Bang. Because the first player has a strong edge, serious players later developed Renju, which adds limits for the first player. In 1994, computer scientist Victor Allis proved that on an empty 15×15 board the first player can always force a win — but that plan is far too long to remember, so real games stay wide open.

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