About Reversi
Reversi is a two-player strategy game on an 8×8 board. Every move traps a line of your opponent’s discs between two of yours and flips them to your colour. The board changes hands constantly, and whoever owns the most discs when neither player can move wins.
Also called: flip discs game, reversi game.
How to play Reversi
- The game starts with four discs in the centre, two of each colour on the diagonals. Black moves first. Against the computer, choose 1st to play black or 2nd to play white.
- On your turn, place a disc on an empty square so that one or more straight lines of the opponent’s discs lie between your new disc and another of yours. Legal squares are marked with a dot.
- Every trapped disc, in every direction (across, down and diagonally), flips to your colour.
- If you have no legal move you pass, and your opponent moves again. This happens automatically, with a notice.
- The game ends when neither player can move, usually when the board is full. The player with more discs wins.
Rules
- A move must flip at least one disc. You can’t place a disc just anywhere.
- Only the discs in lines that run straight from the new disc to one of your own flip. Discs flipped this turn don’t cause further flips.
- You may not pass while you have a legal move.
- If the game ends with empty squares, the final score counts the discs on the board; the winner is whoever has more.
- Undo against the computer takes back your last move and its reply; with a friend it takes back one move.
Reversi tips and strategy
- Corners are gold. A disc in a corner can never be flipped, and it anchors the edges next to it.
- Avoid the squares diagonally next to an empty corner (the “X-squares”). They often hand your opponent that corner.
- Fewer discs early is often better. Having many discs in the middle game usually means fewer moves for you and more for your opponent. Aim to keep your options open (mobility) and restrict theirs.
- Prefer quiet moves that flip few discs and don’t open new empty squares next to your discs (frontier discs give your opponent targets).
- Near the end, count. With a dozen squares left the exact result can be worked out, and moves that force your opponent to pass can swing the game.
Reversi questions
What happens if I have no legal move?
You pass automatically, and a notice in the status line says so. Your opponent moves again. If neither player can move, the game ends immediately, even if empty squares remain.
How strong is the Hard computer?
Hard searches six to ten moves ahead in the middle game, weighing corners, edges, stable discs and mobility, and with about fourteen empty squares left it plays the endgame perfectly, calculating the exact final score.
Why is the computer letting me have so many discs?
Because disc count in the middle game matters much less than position. Strong players often have fewer discs until the very end, then take the corners and edges and flip large areas at once.
Who goes first?
Black always makes the first move. A rematch swaps colours, so you alternate between moving first and second.
Can a game end in a draw?
Yes. If both players finish with the same number of discs (for example 32–32 on a full board), the game is a draw.
Is my game saved?
Yes. The game in progress is saved in your browser after every move, and your record against each computer level is kept too.
Is Reversi free to play?
Yes. Reversi on Kultured Arcade is completely free: no download, no account and nothing to buy. It runs in any modern browser on a phone, tablet or computer.
Can I play Reversi on my phone?
Yes. The game fits your screen and works with touch as well as a mouse and keyboard, on iPhone, Android, tablets and computers.
Can I play Reversi online with a friend?
Yes. Open the Online tab and choose Create invite, then send the link or the six-character code. The game starts as soon as your friend opens it. Quick match pairs you with someone who is waiting.