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To avoid losing think of another very well known game where the patterns of play are similar.
A game for 2 players
The aim of the game is to slide the green square from the top right hand corner to the bottom left hand corner in the least number of moves.
Players take it in turns to choose a dot on the grid. The winner is the first to have four dots that can be joined to form a square.
Can you discover whether this is a fair game?
A game for 2 players. Set out 16 counters in rows of 1,3,5 and 7. Players take turns to remove any number of counters from a row. The player left with the last counter looses.
An article for teachers and pupils that encourages you to look at the mathematical properties of similar games.
This is an interactive net of a Rubik's cube. Twists of the 3D cube become mixes of the squares on the 2D net. Have a play and see how many scrambles you can undo!
This article for teachers describes several games, found on the site, all of which have a related structure that can be used to develop the skills of strategic planning.
Start with any number of counters in any number of piles. 2 players take it in turns to remove any number of counters from a single pile. The loser is the player who takes the last counter.
A game for 2 players with similaritlies to NIM. Place one counter on each spot on the games board. Players take it is turns to remove 1 or 2 adjacent counters. The winner picks up the last counter.
A collection of games on the NIM theme
Start with any number of counters in any number of piles. 2 players take it in turns to remove any number of counters from a single pile. The winner is the player to take the last counter.
Four numbers on an intersection that need to be placed in the surrounding cells. That is all you need to know to solve this sudoku.
This is a simple version of an ancient game played all over the world. It is also called Mancala. What tactics will increase your chances of winning?
A game for 2 people. Take turns joining two dots, until your opponent is unable to move.
Match pairs of cards so that they have equivalent ratios.
Match the cards of the same value.
Can you beat the computer in the challenging strategy game?
Some puzzles requiring no knowledge of knot theory, just a careful inspection of the patterns. A glimpse of the classification of knots and a little about prime knots, crossing numbers and. . . .
Help the bee to build a stack of blocks far enough to save his friend trapped in the tower.
This article invites you to get familiar with a strategic game called "sprouts". The game is simple enough for younger children to understand, and has also provided experienced mathematicians with. . . .
Can you be the first to complete a row of three?
A Sudoku with a twist.
Can you beat Piggy in this simple dice game? Can you figure out Piggy's strategy, and is there a better one?
Here is a machine with four coloured lights. Can you develop a strategy to work out the rules controlling each light?
A game for 2 players that can be played online. Players take it in turns to select a word from the 9 words given. The aim is to select all the occurrences of the same letter.
The computer starts with all the lights off, but then clicks 3, 4 or 5 times at random, leaving some lights on. Can you switch them off again?
A Sudoku with clues as ratios.
Basic strategy games are particularly suitable as starting points for investigations. Players instinctively try to discover a winning strategy, and usually the best way to do this is to analyse. . . .
Advent Calendar 2010 - a mathematical game for every day during the run-up to Christmas.
Two sudokus in one. Challenge yourself to make the necessary connections.
A simple game for 2 players invented by John Conway. It is played on a 3x3 square board with 9 counters that are black on one side and white on the other.
A game for 2 players. Can be played online. One player has 1 red counter, the other has 4 blue. The red counter needs to reach the other side, and the blue needs to trap the red.
This pair of linked Sudokus matches letters with numbers and hides a seasonal greeting. Can you find it?
Here is a solitaire type environment for you to experiment with. Which targets can you reach?
This article explains the use of the idea of connectedness in networks, in two different ways, to bring into focus the basics of the game of Go, namely capture and territory.
Follow-up to the February Game Rules of FEMTO.
The game of go has a simple mechanism. This discussion of the principle of two eyes in go has shown that the game does not depend on equally clear-cut concepts.
Slide the pieces to move Khun Phaen past all the guards into the position on the right from which he can escape to freedom.
This article shows how abstract thinking and a little number theory throw light on the scoring in the game Go.
A Sudoku with clues as ratios or fractions.
Given the products of diagonally opposite cells - can you complete this Sudoku?
This second Sudoku article discusses "Corresponding Sudokus" which are pairs of Sudokus with terms that can be matched using a substitution rule.
A game for 2 people. Take turns to move the counters 1, 2 or 3 spaces. The player to remove the last counter off the board wins.
This sudoku requires you to have "double vision" - two Sudoku's for the price of one
A Sudoku with clues given as sums of entries.
Can you identify the mathematicians?