Dominoes
The Draw game, the way most people first learn dominoes. Seven tiles each from a double-six set, a line that grows from both ends, and a boneyard to draw from when you are stuck. Go out first and you score the pips left in the other hand. First to 100 wins. The tiles you can play are shown, and the house player never sees your hand.
Two players. A game takes 10 to 20 minutes. More board games: Checkers, Reversi, Four in a Row, Backgammon, Sea Battle and Ludo are in Yuzool's Board Games too.
How to play Dominoes
- The deal: the 28 tiles are shuffled face down and each player takes seven. The other fourteen are the boneyard.
- The start: in the first round the player with the highest double begins (if nobody has a double, the player with the heaviest tile) and may play any tile. After that the winner of the last round starts.
- Your turn: add one tile to either end of the line, matching the number at that end.
- Stuck: if you cannot play you draw from the boneyard until you can. When the boneyard is empty you pass.
- The end of a round: a round ends when a player lays their last tile, or when neither player can play.
Tap a domino in your hand to play it; if it fits both ends, tap the end. With nothing to play, tap the boneyard to draw. The full rules, with worked examples, are in How to play Dominoes.
Scoring
| How the round ended | Score |
|---|---|
| A player lays their last tile | They score all the pips left in the other hand |
| Neither player can play | The lighter hand scores the difference between the two hands |
| Neither can play and the hands are equal | Nobody scores |
The first player to reach 100 points wins the game.
Tips
- Play your heavy tiles early. Every pip left in your hand is a point for the other player if they go out.
- Play doubles when you can. A double fits only one number, so it is the easiest tile to be left holding.
- Keep a spread of numbers in your hand so that you can always answer.
- Notice what makes them draw. If the other player draws on fives, keep fives at the ends.
Questions
Is Dominoes free to play here?
Yes. Dominoes against the Easy and Medium house players, pass and play for two, the coach, undo and autosave are free, with no ads and no sign-up. Board Games Pro, a one-time $1.99 upgrade for all seven games, adds the Hard players, rule options, full statistics and history, and extra board and piece looks.
Does the computer cheat?
No. A house player is given only what a person in its seat could see: its own tiles, the line on the table and how many tiles you and the boneyard hold. It never sees your dominoes or the boneyard. The Hard player counts the tiles that have been played and works out what you probably hold from that.
Which rules are these?
The Draw game for two with a double-six set: seven tiles each, draw until you can play, score the other hand's pips, first to 100. Pro adds a game to 50 or 150, "Leave two in the boneyard" (the last two tiles are never drawn) and the Block game, where you pass instead of drawing.
Can two people play on one device?
Yes. In pass and play the screen is covered between turns and asks you to hand the device over, so each hand stays secret. The game is saved in this browser on this device.