How to play Ataxx
From your first click to a solid strategy: everything you need to play your first game.
Play nowStarting a game
- Open the game with the Play now button and choose to play the computer or a friend.
- Select one of your pieces. The squares where it can go are highlighted.
- Select a neighbouring square to clone, or a square two away to jump.
- Wait for your opponent's move and repeat until the game ends.
Not sure about the details yet? Read the rules first, or try the short tutorials inside the game.
Clone or jump?
Cloning adds a piece to the board. Jumping only moves one and leaves a hole behind. So, as a rule, prefer cloning. Jump when the pieces you convert are worth the hole, or when there is no useful clone.
Strategy ideas
- Stay compact: solid groups leave few holes for your opponent to exploit.
- Watch out for holes. An empty square surrounded by your pieces invites a move that converts several at once.
- Think about the reply, not only the immediate gain. A big capture can open an even bigger one for your opponent.
- Corners and edges have fewer neighbours, so pieces there are harder to convert.
- Near the end, count the empty squares. Closing the board while you are ahead secures the win.