Guide
How to play gomoku
Two players, a big board, and one goal: five in a row. The rules fit in a few lines.
Gomoku, also called five in a row, comes from an old board game played with black and white stones on a go board. In Gomoku XXL, the stones are X and O.
The rules
Two players take turns. Each turn, you place one symbol on an empty cell. X moves first. The first player to line up five or more symbols in a straight line, across, down or diagonally, wins. If the board fills up with no line, the game is a draw.
Threats
A row of four with an empty cell at the end threatens to win on the next move: your opponent must block it. A row of three with both ends open, an open three, becomes an open four if nobody blocks it, and an open four cannot be stopped.
How a game is won
Most games are won by a double threat: one move that creates two threats at once, for example a four and an open three. Your opponent can block only one. Gomoku XXL marks these moments on the board.
Your first game
Start on the 10×10 board against the Easy AI, with Threat markers on. The first time you open the game, a short tutorial explains the rules in three steps.
