Othello (also called Reversi) is a two-player strategy game on an 8x8 board. Place stones to flip the opponent's stones between yours; whoever has the most stones when the board is full wins. Play against an AI opponent.
How to play
On your turn, place a stone that brackets one or more of your opponent's stones in a straight line. All bracketed stones flip to your color. If you cannot make a legal move, you pass. The game ends when neither player can move; whoever owns more squares wins.
Strategy beginners get wrong
Owning lots of stones in the middle game is a trap — you give your opponent more flipping options. Aim for fewer stones early. Corners are the only squares that can never be flipped, so claiming a corner is decisive. Avoid playing next to an empty corner; you usually hand it to your opponent.
FAQ
- Is Othello solved?
- 8x8 Othello is not formally solved, but engines play near-perfectly. Smaller variants (4x4, 6x6) are solved as draws or wins for one side.
- How do tournaments handle the first-move advantage?
- Othello uses fixed opening positions, so the four standard starts are symmetric. Black actually has a slight disadvantage at high levels.
