How to Play Reversi (Othello): Rules and Tips for Two Players

Reversi is a two-player strategy game on an 8 by 8 board. The rules take about a minute to learn, but a good game can be surprisingly deep. You play with round discs that are black on one side and white on the other, and the idea is to trap your opponent's discs and turn them into yours. The game is also sold under the name Othello, which has slightly different rules about how the first four discs are placed. This guide explains the standard rules, how a game ends, and some tips to improve. At the end there is a free Reversi game you can try in your browser.

Othello is a registered trademark. This page is an independent guide and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the owners of that name.

What you need

• A board with 64 squares (8 by 8). Many boards are green.
• 64 discs, each black on one side and white on the other.
• Two players, one playing black and one playing white.

Starting position

The game begins with four discs in the centre of the board: two white and two black, placed diagonally so that the same colours are opposite each other. Black moves first. In the free game we tried, the board starts like this, and the player at the bottom of the screen plays black.

How to take a turn

On your turn, you place one disc of your colour on an empty square. The move is only legal if it traps at least one of your opponent's discs between the disc you just placed and another disc of your colour. Trapped means:

• The opponent's discs are in a straight, unbroken line (across, up and down, or diagonally) between your two discs.
• There are no empty squares in that line.

When you make a legal move, every opponent's disc trapped in this way is flipped to your colour. A single move can flip discs in several directions at once.

For example, if you have a black disc on the left and there are three white discs in a row next to it, placing a black disc on the other side of the three white discs flips all three to black.

Passing

If you have no legal move, you must pass and your opponent plays again. You are not allowed to pass if you do have a legal move. Many computer versions, including the one we tried, show your legal moves on the board, which makes this easier. In the game we tested, each possible square had a small circle with a number, and the number was how many discs that move would flip.

How the game ends

The game is over when:

• the board is full, or
• neither player has a legal move.

Each player counts their discs. The player with more discs wins. If both have the same number, the game is a draw.

Strategy tips

Reversi is a good example of a game where the obvious plan, flipping as many discs as possible, is often wrong. Here are the ideas that matter most.

• Take the corners. A disc in a corner can never be flipped, because there is no line that can trap it. Corners are the strongest squares on the board.
• Avoid the squares next to the corners (especially the ones on the diagonal, which players sometimes call "X-squares"). If you take one early, your opponent can often use it to take the corner.
• Keep your options open. The number of moves you can make (your mobility) matters more than how many discs you have. Early in the game, having fewer discs is often better, because it limits your opponent's choices.
• Don't flip too many discs too soon. If you surround yourself with your own discs, you open up more moves for your opponent.
• Use the edges carefully. Edge discs are harder to flip, but a long edge with a gap can give your opponent a corner.
• Count at the end. In the last few moves, count carefully. The last empty squares can swing the result.

Reversi or Othello?

Reversi is the older name, and the game was invented in the 1880s in England. Othello was introduced in the 1970s and gave the game a fixed starting position, which is also the one used in tournaments. In the Othello version, the starting position is always the same and black always moves first. The two games are otherwise very close, and most online games call themselves Reversi and use that standard layout.

Play Reversi online

Our free Reversi game runs in your browser. In the version we tested, you could choose player vs player on one device or player vs computer with three difficulty levels. A clock shows how long each player has used, and the move hints show how many discs each move flips, so it is a good way to learn the game. See the game below.

More games to play with two: backgammon, dominoes and our list of the best board games for 2 players.