Reversi FAQ

Yes. Every game mode is free, there are no ads and there is nothing to buy.

No. There are no user accounts – open the page and play. Your settings are saved in your browser, and your stats and streaks are kept on your device if you allow it.

Any phone, tablet or computer with a modern browser. There is nothing to download. The board fits your screen, and you can play by tapping, with a mouse or with the keyboard.

Black always moves first. When you play the computer, you can choose whether you play Black or White. The rules show the starting position.

Your turn passes automatically, and your opponent moves again. You can't pass while you still have a legal move. The game ends when neither player can move. Read more about passing in the rules.

There are 5 levels:

• Beginner – still learning, makes mistakes.
• Easy – knows corners are good.
• Medium – plays solid moves.
• Hard – thinks several moves ahead.
• Expert – our strongest computer.

Games against the computer have no clock, so take your time. If you are new to Reversi, start with Beginner or Easy.

Yes, when you play the computer. Undo isn't available in online games or in two-player games on one device. Games in which you used undo don't change your rating.

Yes, against the computer and in two-player games. Install reversi.site with your browser's Install or Add to Home Screen option, and these games also work without an internet connection. Online games need a connection.

Impossible Comeback is a daily endgame challenge. You start far behind on discs against the computer, but the position can still be won if you find the right moves. Everyone gets the same position, and there is a new one every day.

Play today's challenge

There are 2 ways:

• Online: choose Online and create a private room, then send your friend the invite link. When your friend opens it, the game starts. After the game you can play a rematch.
• On one device: choose 2 players and take turns.

Online matchmaking pairs you with another player who is searching at the same time. If no other player is available, you are matched with our computer opponent instead, and the game tells you so before it starts.

To play someone you know, use a private room.

Only in online games: you have 30 seconds per move (60 seconds for your first move). If your time runs out, you lose the game. Games against the computer and two-player games on one device have no clock.

Yes, if you like. A nickname is optional. It is shown only to your opponent during the game. We don't store it on our server; your browser remembers it for next time.

As little as possible. There are no accounts, and we don't ask for your name. Your settings are saved in your browser. Stats, streaks and similar progress are kept on your device only if you allow it. Google Analytics runs only if you accept it, and you can change your choice at any time under Cookie settings at the bottom of the page.

The details are in our privacy policy.

Reversi dates back to England in the 1880s. In early versions the board started empty, and the players placed the first 4 discs in the center themselves. In 1973 a version with a fixed 4-disc start was launched in Japan under the brand name Othello®.

reversi.site is an independent Reversi site. It uses the modern standard start – 4 discs in the center, Black moves first – which is the start used in international tournaments.

Othello® is a registered trademark of MegaHouse Corporation. reversi.site is independent and not affiliated with MegaHouse or the World Othello Federation.

To finish with more discs of your color than your opponent. You place a disc so that it traps a straight line of your opponent's discs, and those discs flip to your color. When neither player can move, the game ends and the discs are counted. The full rules are on our rules page.

A game has at most 60 moves, so a casual game usually takes 5–15 minutes. Online games on reversi.site have 30 seconds per move (60 seconds for your first move). Against the computer there is no clock.

Take the corners, and avoid the squares next to an empty corner, because they often give the corner to your opponent. In the middle of the game, having more possible moves matters more than having more discs. Our strategy guides explain these ideas with board diagrams.

Both are strategy games for two players with black and white pieces and no luck, but they play very differently. In Reversi every move flips some of your opponent's discs to your color, the board has 8×8 squares and a game has at most 60 moves. In Go stones never change color, stones are captured by surrounding them, the board is usually 19×19 and the winner is the player who controls more of the board.

Reversi was invented in England in 1883. Two Englishmen, Lewis Waterman and John W. Mollett, each claimed to be its inventor. The version with a fixed 4-disc start that most people play today was launched in Japan in 1973. Read more in the history of Reversi.

From the standard start, yes. In 2023 researcher Hiroki Takizawa reported a computer proof that perfect play by both players ends in a draw. That doesn't make the game easy for people: there are far too many possible games to memorize.

It comes from the word reverse. When you trap your opponent's discs, they are reversed, that is, turned over to your color.

The board has 64 squares, so a game uses at most 64 discs: 4 in the starting position and 1 for each of the at most 60 moves. Every disc is black on one side and white on the other.

No. The rules fit on one page, and our interactive tutorial teaches them in about 2 minutes. Playing well takes longer: corners, mobility and the endgame take practice.

You don't need to download one. reversi.site works in the browser on phones, tablets and computers, and you can install it as an app with your browser's Install or Add to Home Screen option. Then you can also play the computer offline.

Yes. Teachers, clubs and bloggers can embed a free game against the computer on their own pages, with no ads. The code to copy is on our About page.

reversi.site is run by Opak Oy, a company in Finland. Read more on the About page.

Use the Contact link at the bottom of any page to send us a message. Bug reports and ideas are welcome.