Just Dots

Dots is a classic pen-and-paper strategy game: red versus blue, each trying to surround the other. Just Dots brings it to the screen and gives it what it always lacked — a genuinely strong opponent.

An opponent that actually thinks

Under the hood is a neural network trained from scratch: it was given nothing but the rules and played millions of games against itself. The result is an opponent that doesn't fall for cheap traps and weaves its own nets across half the board. On boards up to 20×20 it confidently beats its own creator; larger boards it is still mastering — and every update makes it stronger.

How to play

Take turns placing one dot at a time on the grid intersections. Close a chain of your dots around your opponent's — and everything inside is yours. Whoever captures more of the opponent's dots wins.

The catch: while you're weaving your encirclement, your opponent is weaving theirs. Every game becomes a race of traps, where sacrificing a single dot can win you twenty. Learning the rules takes two minutes. Learning to read the board takes years.

What's inside

• Any board size: from a compact 15×15 to the classic 39×32 — or set your own
• Interactive tutorial from zero — no prior knowledge needed
• Difficulty levels: from "first game ever" to the one that beats its creator
• Local two-player on one screen
• Save and replay your games — see exactly how you got surrounded
• Two openings: an empty board or the classic "cross" start

Who it's for

Fans of Go, chess, Reversi and abstract strategy with no dice and no luck. Anyone who played Dots in the back row at school and wants to find out how much they've learned since. And anyone who wants an opponent they can't figure out in three games.

Nothing extra

No internet required, no in-app purchases, no ads, no timers. A game takes anywhere from five minutes on a compact board to a leisurely hour on the classic one. Just you, the grid, and a very stubborn opponent.

Add to your wishlist — coming December 2026.