Boxes is a classic paper and pencil game
for two or more players. To begin, make an 8 by 8 grid
of dots on a piece of paper.
The players take it in turn to draw a line
from one dot to another dot which is horizontally or vertically adjacent
. If this line does not complete the fourth side of a square, play passes to the next player. If this line does complete the fourth side of a square
, the player writes their initial in the square and takes another turn.
Play continues in this way until all 49 squares have been claimed. The winner
is the person who captured the greatest number of squares.
In the early stages of the game it is best not to complete the third side of any square, as this will mean that your opponent
will be able to claim the square in their turn. Consequently, between experienced players, the game tends to a reach a point where all the squares have two of their sides taken. Eventually, one person will be forced to draw in a third side, and this will usually result in the next player being able to claim many squares in one go.
lies in careful play at the start of the game. Try to make sure that one of your opponents has to be the first to draw in a third side. Often it is beneficial to sacrifice
one or two boxes to your opponents in order for you to claim many more boxes on your subsequent turn.
There is no reason why boxes has to be played on an 8 by 8 grid, and experienced players may use 10 by 10 or more.