Squares – The Stop Rule of Death

Behold! The classic game of squares. While up to 4 players can participate in a single game, Only Josh and I participated in this strategic game of Mortal Kombat. The rules are simple, a grid of “dots” are drawn on a piece of paper. From these dots, players take turns drawing a connecting line from dot to dot going up & down or left to right. The objective of the game is to create a complete square by conjoining the drawn lines. This next rule is critical, once a square is completed by a player they get to draw another line. This “extra turn” is a reward for completing a square and can cause a lot of squares to be completed in one fell swoop. The game ends when all dots on the grid are drawn in and the number of squares are tallied.

After playing one full game of dots, Josh and I chose to implement a “STOP rule” to the equation. This stop rule would function as a one-time stop to a players square completion. Simply put, if a player realized that they were about to get a lot of squares stacked against them they could stop that momentum of the opposing player. This new rule brought an added dynamic to the game by offering a strategic last resort. If used correctly, this rule could completely flip the tables in your favor. Used incorrectly and you would become crippled by the opposing players onslaught of square completions! Play at your own risk.