Reversi looks like the friendliest board game in the world. You flip your opponent's discs to your color, most discs wins, done. Then you play a few games, lose badly, and realize there is a surprising amount of depth hiding under those two colors. The tips below are the exact things I wish someone had told me when I started, and they will turn you from a beginner who flips everything into a player who actually thinks a few moves ahead. You can keep Reversi open and play free here while you work through them.
Tip 1: Corners are everything
This is the single most important idea in Reversi. A disc in a corner can never be flipped, because there is no square on the far side to bracket it. That makes corners permanent anchors that also let you flip long lines safely for the rest of the game. Almost every winning plan runs through grabbing corners, and almost every loss traces back to handing one to your opponent. If you remember nothing else, remember to fight for corners.
Tip 2: Never play the squares next to an empty corner
The squares diagonally next to a corner, often called the X squares, are the most dangerous on the board while that corner is still open. Playing one usually hands your opponent an easy route straight into the corner. The two squares directly beside a corner along the edge, the C squares, are risky for the same reason. Until a corner is taken, treat the three squares around it as traps and stay away.
Tip 3: Flipping the most discs is a beginner trap
The most natural instinct is to make the move that flips the biggest pile of discs. It feels like progress. It is usually a mistake. Discs you own in the middle of the board are the easiest ones for your opponent to flip right back. Early on you actually want to own fewer discs, kept compact in the center, not a sprawling wall that gives your opponent dozens of moves. Count the position, not the discs.
Tip 4: Play for mobility
Mobility means the number of legal moves you have available. The player with more options controls the game, and the player forced into bad moves loses. A good rule of thumb is to keep your discs clustered and let your opponent's discs spread out, because a spread out position gives them fewer safe replies. When your opponent has only one or two legal moves, you can often force them to play right into a corner square for you.
Tip 5: Think about the last move, not the current count
Reversi is decided at the very end, and huge swings happen on the final few moves. It is completely normal to be behind on disc count for most of the game and then flip twenty discs in the closing moves to win. So do not panic when the board looks red or white against you in the middle game. Play for good squares and stable discs, and let the count sort itself out at the finish.
A simple opening plan
You do not need memorized openings to improve fast. Follow this instead: keep your early moves near the center, avoid the edges until you have a reason to be there, never touch an X square while its corner is open, and watch for chances to limit your opponent to bad replies. That alone will beat most casual players and the easier computer levels.
Quick reference checklist
- Fight for corners, they can never be flipped.
- Avoid the X and C squares next to an open corner.
- Do not chase the move that flips the most discs.
- Keep your discs compact to protect your mobility.
- Stay patient, the game is won in the final moves.
Where Reversi fits with other board games
Reversi is what people call an abstract strategy game, the same family as chess and checkers, where there is no luck and no hidden information, just you and the board. If you enjoy that kind of pure thinking game, try Checkers and Chess next, and the checkers winning strategy guide uses a lot of the same positional ideas about controlling key squares. Connect Four is another quick one that rewards thinking ahead. If you want the history and formal rules, the Reversi entry on Wikipedia is a solid reference.
Keep playing
None of this clicks in one game. Corners will feel obvious quickly, but the mobility idea takes a while to really sink in. Play a handful of rounds keeping the checklist in mind, and you will notice the computer, or your friend, walking into corners you set up. When you want a break from the two color board, the full games list is one click away.