Neutral domino placement
A legal move covers exactly two empty cells sharing an edge. Either orientation is available to both players. Covered cells never reopen or overlap another domino.
Cram
Make the final horizontal or vertical domino placement on the board.
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How to play
Make the final horizontal or vertical domino placement on the board.
- Choose two empty squares that share an edge.
- Place one neutral domino across those two squares.
- Players alternate until no adjacent empty pair remains; the last mover wins.
Strategy tips
- A placement can divide the open board into independent regions.
- Preserve pairs of cells for yourself while breaking the opponent's large spaces.
- Count narrow corridors because their move parity is easier to control.
Complete guide
Rules, scoring, and strategy
Cram is an impartial placement game: both players place the same kind of domino horizontally or vertically on two adjacent empty squares. The player with no legal placement loses.
Disconnected regions
A placement may split the remaining empties into regions that no future domino can cross. Those regions act like smaller games whose move possibilities combine.
Control narrow corridors
A one-cell-wide corridor has an easy-to-count number of placements, while open rectangles permit many cross-cuts. Closing a corridor can fix its parity and simplify the endgame.
Do not create isolated cells for free
An isolated cell cannot hold a domino and is effectively dead space. Sometimes creating one is useful because it removes options; sometimes it wastes a cell that could have supported your final move.
Questions players ask
May both players use both orientations?
Yes. Cram is impartial: horizontal and vertical placements are available to either player.
Can dominoes overlap?
No. Both selected cells must be empty and share an edge.
How does the game end?
When the player to move has no adjacent empty pair, that player loses and the previous mover wins.
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