Strategy Games12
Chess, checkers, trick-taking card games, and board races — seven games with no timer and no pressure to move fast.
About Strategy Games
This shelf splits into board games and card games. On the board side, Chess is played as a local two-player match on an 8x8 board with the standard 16 pieces per side; moves are validated against the real rules for each piece, though there is no automatic castling, so you tuck the king away with explicit king moves. Checkers uses twelve pieces per side on the dark squares, with forward-only movement until a piece is crowned on the far row.
Four in a Row and Tic Tac Toe are the quick games here. Four in a Row is a 6-row by 7-column grid where a disc always falls to the lowest free slot, and every placement is checked in all four directions, so a win is detected immediately. Tic Tac Toe is a pure 3x3 local two-player game: X always opens, occupied squares are disabled, and the board locks once a line is made.
The card games carry the most rules. Hearts is a four-player trick-taking game against three AI opponents: 13 cards each, three passed before play, and a penalty pool of exactly 26 points — thirteen hearts at one point plus the Queen of Spades at thirteen. Taking all 26 shoots the moon and hands the penalty to everyone else. Spades is the partnership version: you and your partner bid a combined contract, spades are always trumps, and overtricks pile up as bags that cost you later.
Ludo is the race. Four tokens per player start in home base, a six is needed to leave, and each token must complete the full outer loop before turning into the private home column — and the final step needs an exact roll. The four star squares are the only safe parking spots, so spreading tokens is the main defensive habit.
None of the games on this shelf runs on a clock. That makes them the right choice when you want to think, and it also means you can leave a board open and return to it without losing anything except the current match state if you close the tab.
Opponent behaviour is stated per game: Chess, Checkers, Four in a Row, and Tic Tac Toe are same-device two-player, while Hearts and Spades fill the other seats with AI and Ludo supports both.
Strategy Games — Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a computer opponent for every game?
No. Hearts and Spades fill the other seats with AI opponents. Chess, Checkers, Four in a Row, and Tic Tac Toe are local two-player games on one device, and Ludo supports both modes.
Does Chess here support castling?
No automatic castling is implemented. Every move follows the real movement rules for its piece, but you move the king to safety with ordinary king moves instead of a castling shortcut.
Is there a clock or time limit?
No game on this shelf is timed. You can think as long as you like, and closing the tab only loses the current board, not your saved statistics.
What is shooting the moon in Hearts?
Taking all 26 penalty points in one round — thirteen hearts plus the Queen of Spades. Instead of scoring 26, you hand 26 points to each opponent, which usually swings the whole match.
How does bidding work in Spades?
You and your partner each bid how many tricks you expect to win, and the two bids form your side contract. You score only if you make it; extra tricks count as bags that add a penalty later.
Do I need an account to save a game?
No. There is no account and no cloud save: board state lives in the open tab, and long-term statistics stay in your browser on that device.