Two players · 6 min · turn-based

Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe

Nine-board tic-tac-toe. Nine boards. Your move picks their board.

Nine small games of tic-tac-toe in a 3×3 grid. Win a small board by getting three in a row, and win the match by taking three small boards in a line. The twist: the square you play in decides which small board your rival must play in next, so every move is also a move against yourself.

Play Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe Leaderboard

No account needed: press play and you join as a guest. Create an account later to keep your history and earn a rating.

How to play Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe

The board is nine small tic-tac-toe boards arranged in a 3×3 grid.
The first move can go anywhere. After that, the square you pick inside a small board sends your rival to the matching small board.
If that board is already won or full, your rival may play in any open board.
Get three in a row on a small board to win it.
Win three small boards in a line to win the match. If no line is possible, whoever won more small boards wins; equal is a draw.

Controls

Tap a square in the highlighted board
The square you pick sends your rival to that board

Tips to win

Think about where you send your rival, not only where you play: avoid sending them to a board they can win.
Sending your rival to a finished board gives them a free choice, usually a gift.
The centre board matters most for the big line, just like the centre square in normal tic-tac-toe.

How a match works

Open the game on your device and press play.
Get matched with someone straight away, or send a friend your private room link and wait for them to join.
You take turns; each move appears on the other screen as soon as the server accepts it. A match takes about 6 minutes.
Lost your connection? Come back within a minute and the match carries on where it stopped.

Also known as: super tic-tac-toe · meta tic-tac-toe · tic-tac-toe with nine boards

Questions

Can I play Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe online with a friend?

Yes. Open Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe, choose to play a friend and send them the private room link, they open it on their own phone or computer and the match starts when you are both ready. You can also invite a player by username, or take a quick match against whoever is waiting.

Is Ultimate Tic-Tac-Toe free, and do I need an account?

It is free, with no download and no account needed: press play and you join as a guest. Create an account later if you want to keep your match history and earn a rating on the leaderboard.

How is it different from normal Tic-Tac-Toe?

Normal Tic-Tac-Toe always ends in a draw with good play. Here every move also decides where your rival plays next, so there is real strategy and games are rarely drawn.