Your turn — you are X
Tic-tac-toe with hidden depth. Nine small boards sit in a 3×3 grid, and every square you mark sends your opponent to the matching board for their next move. Win a small board to claim its square on the big grid; line up three claimed boards and you win the whole game. Suddenly a child's game becomes a battle of traps and tempo — you're not just playing one board, you're steering where the fight goes next. Play X against an AI that sharpens with every win you string together.
The board is nine small tic-tac-toe boards laid out in a big 3×3 grid. You are X and move first; the AI is O. On your turn, tap any empty cell inside the board you are allowed to play in — the allowed board (or boards) glows green.
Here is the heart of it: the position of the cell you mark, within its small board, tells your opponent which big-grid board they must play in next. Mark the top-right cell of a board, and your opponent must answer in the top-right board. So every move is two decisions at once — where to play, and where to send them.
Win a small board by getting three of your marks in a row inside it, just like normal tic-tac-toe. That board is then yours and shows your mark on the big grid. A small board that fills with no winner is a dead square that counts for neither side.
If your move would send the opponent to a board that is already won or full, they get a free choice and may play in any open board instead. The same applies to you.
You win the whole game by claiming three small boards in a row — across, down, or diagonally — on the big grid. Win to extend your streak; each win makes the AI search deeper and play harder.
Think about where you send them, not just where you play. A move that completes nothing for you but forces the AI into a board where it has no good reply is often stronger than a flashy local capture. Every mark is also an order: choose the cell whose position points the opponent somewhere harmless.
The centre board is gold. It sits on four of the eight big-grid winning lines, more than any other board, so controlling it is worth a real fight. Be wary, though, of moves that hand the opponent a free swing at it.
Beware the move that sends them where they want to go. Before you mark a cell, picture the board its position points to. If that board lets the AI win a square or build a big-grid threat, look for a different cell — even in the same small board — that sends them somewhere quieter.
Use the free move, and deny it. Sending the opponent to a finished board gives them a free choice anywhere, which is usually bad for you — so avoid it unless the free board you'd open is harmless. Equally, when you get a free move, spend it on the centre or on a board that sends the AI into trouble.