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Game modes · Mini game · unrated

Tic-Tac-Toe

Tic-Tac-Toe darts is noughts and crosses on the dartboard. Each of the nine cells is a target, from a plain number to a points total for your visit. Get three in a row before your opponent does.

  • Two players or two teams, a bot, or a friend online
  • Four levels, from plain numbers up to a 180
  • 1 to 3 moves per visit
  • Unrated, so your average stays untouched
Play Tic-Tac-Toe
How it works
Tic-Tac-Toe · Medium X wins the leg
To throw
  1. D16Dart 1
  2. –Dart 2
  3. –Dart 3
The end of a leg on Medium with one move per visit. O fails to block, and X completes the top row. Drawn as the app shows it, with the free fields lit on the board.

The rules

How Tic-Tac-Toe darts works

Of the two sides, throws first and second, unless a bull-off or a random draw decides otherwise. After that you take turns, one visit each.

  1. Hit the target, take the cellEach cell names a target on the board, such as a number, a double, a treble or the bull. The first dart of your visit that hits a free cell puts your mark on it.
  2. Three darts for one moveIn the classic game you get one move per visit and three darts to make it. As soon as you take a cell, the visit is over and any darts left stay in your hand.
  3. Or take it with your scoreSome cells ask for points instead, such as “75+”. If none of your three darts took a cell, their total can take one of these after the third dart.
  4. Three in a row winsThree marks across, down or diagonally win the leg. If all nine cells fill up with no row, a new grid is dealt and play carries on.

The grid

What’s in a cell

The big label is the target, and the small line underneath says what counts on it. A score cell always says “points”.

  • A numberAny dart in the 14 takes it: single, double or treble.
  • A doubleOnly the double ring of the 16.
  • A trebleOnly the treble ring of the 19.
  • The bullThe 25 or the bullseye. It is the middle cell on Easy and Medium.
  • The bullseyeOnly the 50 counts. The middle cell on Hard.
  • A visit scoreYour three darts add up to at least 75. Checked after the third dart.
  • The maximumThe middle cell on Extreme: three treble 20s.

Which score cell do you get? If your total is enough for more than one, Sridu picks the cell a good player would take. It completes your row if it can. Otherwise it blocks your opponent’s row, then takes the middle, then the highest.

Setting · Difficulty

Four levels of difficulty

The level sets what the nine cells are made of. Each leg is dealt a new grid, so the targets change every time, but the mix below always stays the same.

  • Easy

    • 6 numbers
    • 2 visits of 26–45
    • Bull in the middle

  • Medium

    • 3 numbers, 2 doubles, 1 treble
    • 2 visits of 50–80
    • Bull in the middle

  • Hard

    • 3 doubles, 3 trebles
    • 2 visits of 85–120
    • Bullseye (50 only) in the middle

  • Extreme

    • 2 doubles, 3 trebles
    • 3 visits of 100–140
    • 180 in the middle
AutoThe default. Sridu picks the level from your 3-dart average and starts you on Easy if you have no games yet. It never picks Extreme for you.
  1. Easybelow 45
  2. Medium45–70
  3. Hard70 and up

Setting · Hits per visit

How many cells per visit

One visit may take 1, 2 or 3 cells. Here are the same three darts (D16, T19, 18) on the Medium grid:

  • 1move per visit
    1. D16Dart 1
    2. –Dart 2
    3. –Dart 3

    The classic. The first hit takes its cell and the visit is over.

  • 2moves per visit
    1. D16Dart 1
    2. T19Dart 2
    3. –Dart 3

    Two cells per visit. You can set up a line and finish it in the same visit.

  • 3moves per visit
    1. D16Dart 1
    2. T19Dart 2
    3. 18Dart 3

    Every dart can take a cell. Games go fast, and one strong visit can win the leg.

A score cell also counts as a move. If you have a move left after the third dart, your total can still take one.

In the game

What you see on screen

The grid sits next to the scoreboard, and the dartboard on screen lights up the fields you can still take. Five things you will see:

  • Free cells

    The big label is the target, the small line says what counts. Every free field also lights up on the dartboard.

  • Taken

    The mark covers the cell and its label fades. A new mark pops in and shows big on the dartboard for a moment, and the lamp of its field goes out.

    1. 11Dart 1
    2. T20Dart 2
    3. –Dart 3
    Visit complete

    Your moves are used up, so the visit is over. The board dims straight away, its rim turns violet and a crossed-out dart appears. Pull your darts. A dart thrown now doesn’t count.

  • Three in a row

    The row lights up green and the leg is won. The next leg starts on a new grid, with the other side throwing first.

  • Draw: a new grid

    All nine cells are taken with no row. A new grid is dealt at once and play carries on with the next player.

  • Lamps on the board: every free cell that names a field lights that field up on the dartboard. When the cell is taken, its lamp goes out, so one look at the board shows what is still open. Score cells have no lamp, because they ask for points, not a field.
  • Whose turn: the big or next to the grid. The scoreboard lists how many cells each side holds and how many darts it has thrown.
  • Entering darts by hand: tap the field on the board. With a mouse, the field lights up with its name before you click. Outside the double ring it shows 0, for a miss.
  • A wrong dart? Tap its chip and correct it, as in every other mode. The grid updates with it, and a cell taken by mistake is free again.
  • Need a break? You can pause Tic-Tac-Toe like any other game. Online, both boards have to agree.

Setup

Start a game

Open Party & duels in the game setup and pick Tic-Tac-Toe. Players, legs and online opponents are set up the same way as for a match.

  • PlayersThere are always two sides: two players, you against a bot of your strength, or you against an online opponent throwing at their own board. With three or more players you play in two teams. The team switch turns on by itself and the list is split alternately. Click the letter next to a player to move them to the other team. Players at this board and online players can share a team.
  • Uneven teamsTwo against one? Choose how the turns go. With Every side once, the lone player throws every visit for their side. With Every player once, everyone throws once per round, so the bigger team gets more visits.
  • DifficultyAuto, Easy, Medium, Hard or Extreme. See the four levels.
  • Hits per visit1, 2 or 3. See moves per visit.
  • LegsA single leg, first to 2, first to 3 or more. Each leg is played on a new grid. Mini games have no sets.
  • Who throws firstThe player at the top of the list, a bull-off or a random draw. From the second leg on, the sides take turns to start.
  • UnratedTic-Tac-Toe doesn’t count towards your average, your statistics or the leaderboards. Sridu only keeps a tally of your wins.

Tips

How to win more often

  • Take the middle. It is part of four lines, more than any other cell. On Easy and Medium the middle is the bull, and a 25 is enough.
  • A miss can still pay. Aim at a field, and if you miss it, your three-dart total may still take a score cell. A big visit is never wasted.
  • Watch your opponent. If they have two in a line, block the third cell before you build your own.
  • Playing a bot of your strength? Try 2 or 3 moves per visit. Attacking pays off more, and comebacks become possible.
  • Two against one: with Every side once the lone player throws as many visits as the whole other team. That makes a fair handicap for the strongest player in the room.
  • Useful practice, too: you throw at doubles and trebles and go for big scores under pressure, and none of it affects your average.
  • More fields: Dart Bingo gives every player a card of their own, and the first full row wins.

Game modes

More ways to play

Ready for a game of Tic-Tac-Toe darts?

Open the app, go to Party & duels and play a friend at your board, someone online or a bot of your strength.

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