3D Tic Tac Toe (4×4×4)
Tic tac toe grows a third dimension. Four 4×4 boards are stacked into a cube, and a line of four can run along a layer, straight down through all four layers, or corner to corner through the middle of the cube.
How to play 3D Tic Tac Toe
- The board is a cube of 64 cells, shown as four 4×4 layers from top to bottom. X moves first, then players take turns claiming one empty cell.
- Make a line of four of your marks to win. A line can lie flat inside one layer (a row, a column or a diagonal), run straight down through the same cell of every layer, or slant through all four layers.
- There are 76 winning lines in total — 48 inside layers or straight down, 24 slanting diagonals through the layers, and 4 great diagonals from corner to opposite corner of the cube.
- If all 64 cells are filled and nobody has four in a row, the game is a draw.
Controls
- Tap or click a cell to place your mark. On a keyboard, use the arrow keys to move within a layer, PageUp/PageDown (or [ and ]) to change layers, and Enter to play.
- View switches between flat layers side by side and a tilted 3D stack.
- With hints on, a green outline marks a cell where you can win now and a red outline marks a cell you must block.
- Undo takes back your last move and the computer’s reply.
Tips
- The eight corners and the eight cells of the inner cube each sit on seven lines; every other cell sits on only four. Claim those strong cells early.
- The winning idea is the same as in the classic game: build two threats at once so your opponent can only block one.
- Picture a straight line through the layers: the same cell position in layers 1 to 4, or a cell that shifts one step per layer.
- Always scan every layer for three in a line before you move — threats that run through the layers are easy to miss.
FAQ
How do you win 3D tic tac toe?
Get four of your marks in a straight line. The line can stay inside one layer, drop straight through all four layers, or slant through them one step at a time, including the four long diagonals of the cube.
How many ways are there to win on a 4×4×4 board?
There are 76 winning lines: 40 inside the four layers (rows, columns and two diagonals each), 16 straight down through the layers, 16 slanting diagonals through the layers and 4 great diagonals across the whole cube.
Can the first player always win?
With perfect play the first player can force a win on the 4×4×4 cube, but the winning strategy is far too long to memorise, so real games stay open. Against the Hard computer you will need sharp double threats.
Why not play on a 3×3×3 cube?
On a 3×3×3 cube the first player wins easily by taking the center, so the 4×4×4 version is the standard way to play three-dimensional tic tac toe.
Can two people play on one device?
Yes. Choose 2 Players and take turns on the same phone, tablet or computer.