Four in a Row
Four in a Row: Quick Guide and Game Info
Four in a Row is a strategy game where you and your computer opponent take turns dropping colored discs into a 7-column, 6-row board. Your goal is to connect four of your discs horizontally, vertically or diagonally before your opponent does. You play as Yellow and always make the first move, while your computer opponent plays as Red.
At Evergreen Arcade, you can choose between three opponents, that is Marty, Martin and Martimus and play a single game or turn it into a longer Best of 3 or Best of 5 series. The rules are simple, but the challenge comes from gravity. Unlike Tic-Tac-Toe, you can’t place a disc in any empty square you want. You choose a column and the disc falls to the lowest available position. Every move therefore affects not only the current board but also which positions become available next.
We built our version of Four in a Row around the traditional 7×6 board, with three computer opponents offering different levels of difficulty.
Marty — Easy: Marty mostly chooses his moves at random. He’s usually the easiest opponent to beat, although his unpredictability means he’ll occasionally drop a disc into exactly the right place.
Martin — Medium: Martin recognizes patterns on the board and has a better idea of what you’re trying to do. He doesn’t always make the strongest decision, though, so careful play will still give you opportunities to catch him out.
Martimus — Hard: Martimus is our strongest opponent. He uses strategy when choosing his moves and is better at recognizing threats and creating opportunities of his own. If Marty and Martin aren’t giving you enough trouble, Martimus is the one to challenge.
You can play any opponent in a One Off, Best of 3 or Best of 5 series.
Game Layout and Setup
The game uses a board with 7 columns and 6 rows.
You play with Yellow discs and your opponent uses Red. Yellow always goes first.
Before starting, choose your opponent:
- Marty for Easy
- Martin for Medium
- Martimus for Hard
Then choose the type of match you want to play:
- One Off for a single game
- Best of 3 for a three round series
- Best of 5 for a five round series
The scoreboard keeps track of wins during a series, while the controls let you move on to the next round or start a new series. Once you’ve made your selections, you’re ready to start dropping discs.
How to Play Four in a Row
On your turn, click your mouse or tap your screen above one of the seven columns.
Your Yellow disc falls down that column until it reaches either the bottom of the board or another disc already occupying the space below it. Your opponent then places a Red disc, and you continue taking turns.
The first player to connect four discs in an uninterrupted line wins the round. A winning line can run:
- horizontally across a row,
- vertically up a column,
- diagonally upward, or
- diagonally downward.
If the entire board fills without either player connecting four, the round ends in a draw. The rules may be straightforward, but winning consistently requires you to think about more than the move directly in front of you.
How to Win at Four in a Row
Control the center. The middle columns are generally more useful than the outside columns because discs placed near the center can contribute to more possible winning lines. A central disc may eventually form part of a horizontal, vertical or diagonal connection, giving you more ways to develop an attack. That doesn’t mean you should blindly play in the center every turn, but controlling central space gives you more options as the board develops.
Always check for an immediate win. Before planning anything complicated, look at the board and ask one simple question. Can I connect four right now? If you have a winning move available, take it. Then ask the same question from your opponent’s perspective. If Red can connect four on the next move, blocking that column becomes your priority. There’s no point building a clever attack if Marty, Martin or Martimus can win immediately.
Create more than one threat. A single obvious threat is relatively easy to block. A much stronger position is one where you create two possible winning moves at the same time. If you can reach a position where two different columns would complete a four on your next turn, your opponent can block only one of them. Creating these double threats is one of the most important ideas in Four in a Row.
Remember that gravity matters. This is where Four in a Row becomes very different from games such as Tic-Tac-Toe. You may be able to see the perfect square for completing a line, but you can’t play there unless the squares beneath it have already been filled. That means you need to think not only about where you want a disc but also about how you’re going to build the position underneath it. More importantly, be careful about doing that work for your opponent. If Red needs a particular square to complete four, placing a Yellow disc underneath that square could accidentally provide the support Martimus needs to drop directly onto his winning position. Before every move, look at the square that your disc will make playable above it.
More Four in a Row Strategy Tips
Look for diagonal opportunities. Horizontal and vertical connections are usually easy to spot. Diagonal lines can be harder to notice because they need to be built gradually as the board fills from the bottom upward. Keep an eye on groups of your discs that rise across neighboring columns. A diagonal threat may be developing even when the discs don’t initially look connected. Do the same for your opponent. Missing a diagonal is an easy way to lose a game you thought was under control.
Think at least one move ahead. Before dropping a disc, ask: What will my opponent be able to do after this? Your move changes the board in two ways. It occupies one position, but it also creates a new playable position directly above it. Sometimes that new square is more important than the one you’re taking.
Don’t chase only one line. If you keep extending one obvious horizontal or diagonal line, a stronger opponent has plenty of time to interfere. Instead, look for moves that contribute to several possible connections. The more useful your discs are in different directions, the harder it becomes for your opponent to defend against everything.
Use your opponent’s moves. Your opponent’s discs aren’t just obstacles. Because every disc provides support for the square above it, Red’s moves can sometimes make a position available that you couldn’t reach before. Watch for opportunities where your opponent accidentally builds part of the structure you need.
Adjust to your opponent. Marty, Martin and Martimus don’t approach the board in quite the same way. Against Marty, you can usually concentrate on building your own connections because his random play often misses developing threats. Don’t get careless, though — random moves occasionally land in very useful places. Against Martin, pay more attention to disguising your plans. He recognizes patterns and threats, although he doesn’t always choose the strongest response. Against Martimus, obvious attacks are less likely to work. Try to create several possibilities at once and think about what his strongest response to your move will be. The goal isn’t simply to make a good move. It’s to leave your opponent with bad choices.
One Off, Best of 3 and Best of 5
If you only want a quick game, choose One-Off.
For a longer contest, you can challenge Marty, Martin or Martimus to a Best of 3 or Best of 5 series. The scoreboard keeps track of the rounds as you play.
Drawn rounds remain draws. If the series finishes without either side ending ahead, the overall result is a draw as well.
Playing a series is a good way to judge how consistently you can beat each difficulty rather than relying on the result of a single round.
Start with Marty, move up to Martin when you’re winning regularly, and then see how your strategy holds up against Martimus.
A Little Bit of Four in a Row History
Four in a Row is a classic connection style strategy game that has entertained people for generations. People sometimes link early stacking versions to Captain Cook’s voyages, though evidence is thin. The earliest solid record of a similar game is a 1946 patent by Theodore R. Duncan for a stacking alignment game; by the late 1960s a three-dimensional version using poles and beads (Score Four) was already on the market. Games based on this concept became especially popular during the 20th century as tabletop and family strategy games grew in popularity around the world. The simple gravity mechanic and room for tactical foresight helped the idea take hold as a quick, competitive tabletop favourite across ages.
Today, Four in a Row remains one of the most recognizable and enjoyable strategy puzzle games, combining quick gameplay with surprisingly deep tactics.
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