Gomoku Online

Gomoku, also called Five in a Row or Gobang, is one of the simplest strategy games there is: two players take turns placing black and white stones on the intersections of a grid, and the first to line up five of their own — across, down or diagonally — wins. It takes a minute to learn, and the fight over every open three makes it last a lifetime.

Here you can play Gomoku online, free, without an account: against a computer opponent with three levels, or against a friend on the same screen. The board is the standard 15 × 15, you play black and move first, and you can undo a move or ask for a hint whenever you like. Your win–loss record against the computer is kept in your browser.

How to play Gomoku Online

1. Choose a mode: Easy, Normal or Hard against the computer, or Two players to take turns on one device.
2. You play black and move first. With a mouse, click any empty intersection to place a stone. On a touch screen, tap once to aim (a dashed ring appears) and tap the same point again — or press Place — to commit, so a stray touch never decides a game.
3. The computer answers with white. The last stone placed is marked with a small red ring.
4. Line up five or more stones of your colour in a row, column or diagonal to win. If the board fills up first, the game is a draw.
5. Made a mistake? Undo (or U) takes back your move and the computer’s reply. Hint (or H) aims at the move the computer would suggest.

Gomoku Online controls

Gomoku Online tips & strategy

• Play near the centre. Lines that can grow in every direction are worth more than lines pressed against the edge.
• An open three must be answered. Three in a row with both ends empty becomes an open four next turn, and an open four cannot be stopped.
• Build two threats at once. A move that makes two open threes, or a four and an open three, is how most games are won — your opponent can only block one.
• Block early, not late. If the computer has an open three, block an end now; waiting one more move is usually too late.
• Keep your stones connected loosely. Stones one gap apart (like X · X X) are hard to read and turn into fours quickly.
• Use Hint to learn, Undo to explore. Try a line, see how the computer punishes it, and step back.

Gomoku online against the computer: three levels

The computer scores every shape on the board — fives, open and closed fours, open threes — and searches ahead before it moves. The levels differ in how far it looks and how often it lets a weaker move through:

Each level works within a time budget, so even Hard answers in about a second on a phone. Your wins and losses against the computer are added to the record shown above the board.

Gomoku online rules on this board

There are several rule sets for five in a row. This game uses freestyle Gomoku, the most common one online: a 15 × 15 board, black moves first, and a line of five or more wins for either player. There are no restrictions on black’s moves.

Tournament play often uses Renju, which forbids black from making a double three, a double four or a line of six, because in freestyle Gomoku the first player has a theoretical advantage with perfect play. Those restrictions are not used here — the game is meant for casual play, and the computer gives you black.

Gomoku online with two players on one screen

Pick Two players and pass the device back and forth, or sit on either side of a laptop. The game shows whose turn it is, Undo takes back one move at a time, and the aim-then-confirm tap on touch screens stops anyone from placing a stone by accident. This mode does not connect two different devices — there is no online matchmaking — so both players need to be at the same screen.