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Connect 4 is a two-player game played on a vertical grid. Players take turns dropping red and yellow discs into the columns. A disc falls to the lowest empty space in that column. The aim is to be the first player to connect four of your own discs in a straight line.

The grid

The classic grid has seven columns and six rows. Each player has twenty-one discs, enough to fill half the grid. The usual colours are red and yellow, and the frame is usually blue.

How a move works

Pick any column that still has space and slide your disc in from the top. It falls straight down and lands on whatever is already in that column, or on the bottom row if nothing is there yet. The row is not yours to choose — only the column is.

Ways to win

Four connected discs can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal. The four discs must touch in an unbroken straight line.

Blocking

Connect 4 is not only about building your own line. If your opponent has three in a row with one open end, you often need to block that space before they win on their next turn.

How to play

1. Set up the grid. Stand the blue grid upright between the two players. One player takes red discs and the other takes yellow discs.
2. Take turns dropping discs. On your turn, choose any column that is not full and drop one of your discs into it.
3. Let the disc fall. The disc lands in the lowest empty space in that column.
4. Look for four in a row. After each move, check for four connected discs horizontally, vertically, or diagonally.
5. Finish the game. The first player to connect four wins. If the grid fills completely and no one has connected four, the game is a draw.

Strategy

• Use the centre. The middle column is part of more possible winning lines than an edge column.
• Create two threats. A strong move can create more than one possible four-in-a-row, making it impossible for the opponent to block everything.
• Block immediate wins. If the opponent can win on their next turn, block that line unless you can win immediately yourself.
• Watch diagonals early. Diagonal threats are easier to miss because they build upward as pieces support each other.

History

Connect 4 belongs to the wider family of alignment games, where players try to make an unbroken line of their own pieces. The modern plastic vertical-grid version was popularised by Milton Bradley in the 1970s and is now usually associated with its blue frame and red and yellow discs.