Previously featured in Link Dump Friday, Gabriele Cirulli's fiendishly simple and dangerously addictive puzzle game 2048 has sort of been taking over the world, one square at a time. The object, as the title implies, is to reach 2048 by combining squares... when two squares of the same value are merged, they become a single square with their total value, and your goal is to swipe and combine until you reach that golden number... or the board fills up and becomes immovable. It's harder than it sounds, since each time you move with [WASD] and the [arrow] keys, not only do all the squares move at once in the same direction, a new square will also be spawned with a value of either two or four.
If it sounds a lot like Asher Vollmer and Greg Wohlwend's iOS and Android smash-hit Threes!, well, that's because it basically is, albeit extra simplified in every conceivable way, from design to gameplay. Where Threes! actually boasts some surprisingly challenging rules for such a simple mechanic, 2048 is mostly just about simple matching and addition. It identifies as being "similar" to Threes!, which it is, but a bit more than in a passing fashion. It's still fun and enjoyable as it is, but if you do enjoy it, you should probably also make the effort to acquaint yourself with some of the "source material".
2048 is one of those easy to play yet hard to win games that tend to dominate any spare time you might have had, but Gabriele's has really taken off in a massive way, spawning countless imitators and even outright clones in just a few weeks. It's the same sort of unexpected, jaw-dropping viral success of, say, Flappy Bird, but without the infuriating mindlessness. Randomly swiping your board around can admittedly rack up a fairly decent score, but the more the values start climbing, the more apparent it is that you'll need to start coming up with a strategy if you really want to get anywhere close to victory. If you do manage to succeed, you'll actually be given the option to keep going to try for even bigger combos. Playing 2048 has the same sort of "just enough brain involved" appeal of games like Solitaire, and it's easy to see why it can have you going "one more round" over and over. With so many imitators and clones, it's important to give proper credit where credit is due, so make sure you're only playing on the official site, and consider making a donation to the developer if you've lost an hour or several here, and be sure to check out Threes! if you want something even smarter and meatier for your favourite smartphone device.
I kind of feel like this game is trolling me. :P
C'mon for the best scores :)
So far I'm at 3316
I'm going to skip spoilers because this game is so hard that nothing can spoil the overall experience... of failing.
The best advice is to not play this game.
The next best advice is to avoid using the up arrow at all costs.
Seriously - just mash the lower three arrow keys and see how well you do!
@Hippasus:
I got higher scores just mashing than I did on some of my games trying as best as I could.
It's definitely trolling me. -_-
3692 :)
5824 :)
My best is 6272, but I can't even come close to doing it again! :(
Really Dora? As if this game hasn't ruined the lives of enough people as it is, now you want to contribute to the world grinding to a halt and all productivity stopping for days, if not weeks, by spreading the word on this game?
Shame on you. Shame.
12148 is my high, the only time I've ever gotten a 1024 tile. Other than that one run I don't think I've broken 8000.
Congrats Dora :)
Well ThemePark, I think people love to see (and know) if their brain can solve problems :)
only 12148!?!?!?!
How about this online score of 22020...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21823676@N07/13218336344/
6896 :D
Pssst try keeping your highest tiles in a corner, and each subsequent one in ordered rows. This allows you to keep new 2 tiles in the area opposite your highest ones, eliminating some of the randomness and allowing you to get that elusive 2048!
I got 6704 so far.
I've hit 21000 (making a 2048) more than 5 times and could have hit much higher these times but i always quit once i have the 2048 tile because i don't want to get too addicted to trying to get 4096 and wasting my life because its almost impossible, although it has been done using algorithms. I have managed this using a pretty simple technique that just requires a little practice. Pick a corner (i always use the bottom left) where your highest tile will be, ALWAYS. If you lose this corner, quit, you arent getting anywhere now. Then choose a row/column connected to this corner (i always use the bottom row). From here, you want to have your second highest tile second from the corner and so on. Once the bottom row is full work on the tile on the opposite side of the row/column from your corner. Obviously this isnt a perfect strategy and there is more to it but its a premise that has led to me completing the game many times. Some tips to add, never ever ever ever ever use the key that will lose your row/column (in my case the up key). This is because it leads to trapped tiles, removing a space on the board you can use. If you do have a trapped tile it should be your priority over everything else to get rid of it, focus a lot on getting rid of 2's near your row/column instantly, if a 4 spawns above it, the situation can often get out of hand. In short if you follow the following simple rule the game isnt too difficult and you should have at least a 25% chance, possibly far higher, of getting the 2048 tile. ALWAYS HAVE TILES DECREASING IN VALUE THE FURTHER YOU GET FROM YOUR CORNER AND ALONG YOUR ROW/COLUMN. With that there is no excuse for not beating the game with a little persistence... Good luck all!
I totally love this game and it IS addictive, especially I think for the computer nerdy types who have an affection for powers of 2. Tried a Doctor Who version of it today
Started playing when first discovered about a week ago and recommended to all my friends then. Have gotten to about 9900 high score. There IS a strategy, and this is part of the allure as it sinks in subconsciously once you find your niche. I would say try to get "2's" upgraded as soon as possible (unless more advantageous "big money" move), but also try to keep things (with highest values) clustered together (in corners), are the only conscious tips I may give at this time.
PS I just now read post above me and think are on same wavelength
Haah, this game. I've reached 2048 several times and this game is still preposterously addicting - the addiction doesn't end once you win.
So far my highest score is slightly above 28000, though I haven't actually managed to win a 4096 tile yet.
nealpatel94 is spot-on with the strategy - after doing this, it becomes a simple matter of organization. And, of course, losing becomes all the more infuriating when it happens once you actually know how to win.
This game fills me with hate. :P
You can get a 4096 tile!?!?!?!
How about an even tougher to get 9186 tile???
20520 :)
nealpatel94's strategy is the right one. Even knowing this, a couple of things to note:
- Watch out for checkerboard patterns:
2 4 2 4
4 2 4 2
these can be the end of you.
- An mentioned, if your high tile moves, and you're over 64 or so, just hit reload. The odds of winning are pretty much zero at that point.
- It gets a little tense when you have around 512. Most of the squares will be full. But you can empty the board on one good move, so don't panic, just keep combining.
And, if you really want your soul crushed, here's a version with an Artificial Intelligence picking the worst possible places for the tiles (be patient, it takes a second or two to place a tile):
http://sztupy.github.io/2048-Hard/
My best: 88
I assume y'all have seen last Wednesday's xkcd. :)
http://xkcd.com/1344/
Managed to get 16268, but still can't get a 2048 tile :(
[IMG]http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/xq90/534/rkwq.png[/IMG]
Finally got a 2048 tile to end with a score of 27928 :)
100,000 plus points!?!?!?!?!
Woot! Finally got it. 20936
49776. I hit the 4096 tile and was ready quit, but of course someone posted an 8192 tile. Time to get back at it. :P
@argyblarg
It's possible, with a bit of luck, to get your largest tile back in the corner. In my best runs, I've made the mistake (or was forced) to move my largest tile away from the corner once or twice. Assuming your preferred corner is the bottom left and your large tile is one space to the right,You need to start piling down tiles so the column above the large tile is full (this may take a while). The problematic tile is likely low, so it's column should be easy to keep from filling. You can then shift the unfilled columns up and clear the corner.
It's easier if there is only one large tile on the board, since the others will be scrambled up. However, with careful planning, you can usually salvage the rest of the board.
36196 :) Still can't higher than a 2048 tile. Trying though.
Wow congratulations bluemoose19 & Dan!
Have gotten one 1024 tile a few times now and usually score between 12,000 to 15,000. The tips offered above are all accurate. The key being to never ever ever swipe Up or hit the Up arrow, and keep all the largest tiles on the bottom row, preferably in order. One thing I've noticed is that as someone above mentioned getting a criss-cross pattern on two rows is the main culprit for losing and thus one need be careful to NOT go for the easiest or most obvious tile combination sometimes -- it's a trick that will just lead to squares filling up fast with this criss-cross pattern. Sometimes making the opposite move than you want to is the one that will clear the board the fastest. Even though it feels counter intuitive. Well done to those who've already gone past 2048. It still eludes me...but soon!
I`m currently at 45424 points, and i`ve made a 4096 tile. Beyond the usual tip (choose a place for your highest tile and don`t move it) you have to lock one row, filling it up with the next highest tiles in the correct order (e.g. 1024-512-256-128). I always lock the right row, keeping the highest tile at the bottom. I NEVER move to the left.
When your big tile is very high (1024+) you need to use a second adjacent row to keep the flow (in the example above, i`d make the second row to the right, up-downwards with a 64-32-16-8 flow). Now you "only" need an eight right next to the other eight to win the game, going all the way from 8 to 2048!
Now a more complicated tip: try not to depend on the top (in my example) row to make your flow before you get to 1024. That`s because when you make your "flow" move, your locked row will create empty spaces that could end up forcing you to move your beloved high point tile. So, instead make a flow that goes only until the third tile in the row, leaving some space for filling the locked row quickly.
Another thing: don`t panic if you`re forced to scramble your flow or even move the highest tile. Be patient and wit luck and the right moves you`ll be able to fix it. My 4096 game has seen that happen when i was at 1024 and it worked out fine.
Good luck!
63212!!!!! And I got a 4096 :) I got a bit excited after I made the 4096 tile and made a very silly mistake. I kept it going, but couldn't quite recover. Love this game!
29300... I think I just lost my job...
3 tips for 2048 game winning
1 - Do not use the up arrow key unless you have no moves left except that.
2- Always try to keep the high valued blocks in the bottom row and try to arrange the scores on the block in the descending order from to Left to right (last row) and then right to left in the second last row in the pattern.
3 - After achieving the above pattern it will be just too easy to get the 2048 tile by merging the 8 and 8 tiles to get 16, 16 and 16 tiles to get 32 and go on until you get the 2048 tile by merging the 1024 and 1024 tile.
A big thank you to nealpatel94 for the advice above. I doubled my score to 27,000+ and WON. I would only add it took nerves of steel and faith in your instructions, as often it felt counter-intuitive.
Then had fun trying the impossible link posted by argyblarg, and topped out at 264.
Does anyone know of a letter version of 2048? I'd like to find a straightforward "A+A=B" game, the goal being a big golden "K." I'd like to get my number-phobic friend addicted. (Misery loves company, right?)
First time player here! I got a score of 3152, with 256 being my biggest block. Thanks, Dora,!
This game is trolling me, it says that I win if I have a 2048 tile, but I already had an 8192 tile and I still haven't won. lol
tried many strategies for this shit, but this is the most effective:
1. Assume a base just like a Rubik's Cube (bottom is easiest)
2. Never use the key opposite to the base (if you chose bottom, don't press up.)
3. Assume a corner (bottom left is what I chose)
4. Always put the largest tile at the corner.
5. Learn to "lock" a row.
6. ENJOY!!
I've been trying to get a 4096 block but so far I've only be able to get my second big block up to 1024.
As far as scoring goes, I've been able to get higher scores without reaching a 2048 block. So really, the score in this game is useless. It's just a gauge of how long you can last without winning. It should be more impressive to win with as low a score as possible. But, since the game is unpredictable in how it adds new blocks and what their value will be, the only score that matters is your highest value block.
huhuhuhuhuh my best tile is 1048576
best I have gotten is 32300, but get it on the developers website. This website's 2048 does NOT work for me in Chrome.
6416. I've only gotten up to the 512 tile and I refuse to admit how long I've spent playing this game over the past couple of days.
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