2048
Arrow keys or WASD to moveSwipe on the board to move
About the game
2048
2048 is a sliding-tile puzzle on a 4×4 grid: each move slides every tile one way, and two equal tiles that touch merge into their sum. The goal is to build a 2048 tile. Gabriele Cirulli released the original in March 2014 as free, open-source code; this version adds a weekly and all-time world leaderboard.
- First released
- March 2014
- Created by
- Gabriele Cirulli
- Board
- 4 × 4 grid
- Goal
- The 2048 tile
How to play
The board is a 4×4 grid. Each move slides every tile as far as it can go in one direction: up, down, left or right. When two tiles with the same number touch, they merge into one tile with their sum: 2 + 2 becomes 4, 4 + 4 becomes 8, and so on up to 2048.
After every move a new tile appears on an empty square: a 2 most of the time, sometimes a 4. The game ends when the grid is full and no neighbouring tiles match. Every merge adds the value of the new tile to your score.
- Computer: arrow keys or W A S D.
- Phone and tablet: swipe on the board.
- After 2048: press Keep going and play on toward 4096, 8192 and beyond.
Strategy
- Pick a corner and keep your biggest tile there. Most high scores come from building everything toward one corner, for example bottom-left.
- Use mostly two directions. With a bottom-left corner, press down and left most of the time, right when needed, and up only as a last resort.
- Keep the edge row full. A full bottom row cannot shift sideways, so the corner tile stays put when you press left or right.
- Build a descending chain. Line tiles up in order along the edge (256, 128, 64, 32) so each merge rolls into the next one.
- Don’t chase every merge. A merge in the middle of the board often scatters small tiles where they block the chain.
- Think one move ahead of the new tile. New tiles only appear on empty squares; a gap next to your chain invites a 2 into the worst spot.
Origins
2048 was made in a weekend. Gabriele Cirulli, a 19-year-old web developer in Italy, wrote it in March 2014 as a way to pass the time and published it on 9 March 2014 as free, open-source code. It had more than four million visitors in its first week.
The idea came from two earlier games. Threes!, released for iPhone on 6 February 2014 by Asher Vollmer, Greg Wohlwend and Jimmy Hinson after fourteen months of work, introduced sliding numbered tiles that merge. 1024, a quick take on it by Veewo Studio, simplified the rule to equal numbers doubling. Cirulli credited both and declined to make money from the game, saying he did not want to profit from a concept he had not invented.
History
- February 2014 Threes! comes out for iPhone and sets the sliding-tile idea in motion.
- February–March 2014 1024 and other quick variants appear, with a simpler doubling rule.
- 9 March 2014 Gabriele Cirulli publishes 2048 in the browser, open source under the MIT License.
- March 2014 Over four million visitors in the first week; news sites call it viral.
- May 2014 Official iPhone and Android apps.
- Later years Ports to Nintendo 3DS, Apple TV and feature phones, and many versions with bigger grids, other numbers and other shapes.
- 2026 This version on Zippi, with a world leaderboard.
Why it’s fun
- One rule, deep consequences. Every move shifts the whole board, so a simple swipe has effects you have to think about.
- You can see the next win coming. Two 256 tiles a few squares apart pull you through the next ten moves.
- Progress is visible. Each new biggest tile is a milestone, and the colours warm as the numbers grow.
- Luck is small. The only randomness is where a 2 or a 4 appears, so a high score feels earned.
What it trains
2048 is practice in planning a few moves ahead, keeping a structure intact under pressure, and resisting a quick gain that costs position later. Along the way you get very fluent in powers of two.
FAQ
How does the world leaderboard work?
Every game counts automatically. Your best score goes on the weekly board (which starts again each Monday, UTC) and the all-time board. Our server replays your moves to check the score, so it can’t be edited. When your first game ends you can add a name; otherwise you appear as Anonymous. No account is needed.
Is there an undo?
No. As in the original game, every move is final, and every game counts on the leaderboard.
Is 2048 always winnable?
No. New tiles appear at random, so some games end before 2048 however well you play. Good corner strategy makes a win likely, not certain.
Do I need an account?
No. The game opens and saves without sign-up or download.
This version
- Weekly and all-time world leaderboard. Our server replays every move to check the score.
- Arrow keys, W A S D or swipe. Works on phones from 360 px wide.
- The game in progress and your best score are saved on this device.
- Sound for slides, merges and each new biggest tile. M turns it off.
- A 3D board with thick tiles, or the classic flat one. V switches.
- Light and dark themes. No undo, as in the original.
Updates
- 3D view: tiles slide, bump and pop on a tilted board. The flat board is one click or V away.
- Sound effects: merges are pitched by tile value, and a chime marks each new biggest tile from 128 up.
- World leaderboard, weekly and all time. Every game counts; moves are replayed on the server.
- First version on Zippi.
Page last reviewed .
