
Tic-tac-toe is a well-known game that people of all ages enjoy. Other names for it include Xs, Os, Noughts, and Crosses. Two players participate in the game, marking the three-grade box’s slots. The object of the game is to create a string of three initials.
It brings back several treatments. However, if you’re interested in learning more about games like tic tac toe, we recommend reading the list of the top games like tic tac toe in the article that follows.

Dots and Boxes
The number of players can be increased depending on the situation when playing the famous pencil and paper game Dots and Boxes, which can be played between two players. It is among the top tic-tac-toe games.
A French mathematician invented and played the game for the first time in the 19th century. There are various names for it, including “pigs in a pen,” “boxes,” “dot to dot grid,” “the game of dots, dots, and dashes,” and others.
How to Play
Making as many boxes as you can is the object of the game. Each participant will draw a line to form a box, either horizontally or vertically, in turn.
After completing a box, you must sign your name inside the box to claim it as your own.
- Take a piece of paper, then use a pencil or pen to make a grid of dots. They should be at least four doors long and four dots wide.
- Draw a line to begin the game and decide who will go first.
- To join dots, doodle vertical or horizontal lines.
- To win, draw the force wall, the final wall of a box, and place your initials there.
- If you finish the box, you get an extra turn. Before the game begins, make a decision.
- Count the boxes that each member has when the greed is full.
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Sim
Sim must play a game with a pen and a pencil similar to tic-tac-toe. The players must connect the hexagonal doors. Avoiding competing in a triangle among the players according to colour is the object of the game.
The game is over if players complete a triangle using their colour.
The players must create a hexagon covered in dots to begin the game. Every player draws a line when it is their turn to play the game.
How to play
- On a piece of paper, begin by making a hexagon with six dots. You can save time by drawing it with a pen and playing with a pencil rather than creating additional hexagonal grids for various scenarios.
- The players can connect the dots and draw lines on the blank area.
- The person who drew the final line of the triangle loses as soon as it is finished.
Since there is no chance that the lines will be drawn and no triangle will form, the game will not end in a tie.
Pictionary
Robert Angel created the fun-filled charade-like game of Pictionary in 1985. It is one of the best games similar to tic tac toe since each has different gameplay and aesthetic.
Simple acts like moving a piece across a game board where a line of squares is visible are part of the gameplay. Each square will contain a letter or shape indicating the type of picture that should be drawn above it.
How to play
- Organize the players into equal teams and set up the board.
- Choose the team that will go first.
- The First Team member will be highlighted, and the other team will write a common sentence on paper and display it to its players.
- The player must then illustrate anything resembling a sales pitch and inform their teammates of the phrase’s meaning.
- The team wins if all of its members accurately predict within the allotted time. The losing team is the one that cannot guess within the allotted time.
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Battleship
Battleship is a two-player strategy guessing game, sometimes called battleships and Sea Battle. This game must be played on a board or piece of ruled paper where each player’s fleet of warships will be marked.
The game’s catch is that neither player will know the opponent’s Leeds’ whereabouts on the board. While the goal of the game is to destroy the other team’s fleet, players take turns or call shots.
How to play
- Each player’s fleet must have one aircraft carrier for every five squares. four squares with one battleship. Three squares for one cruiser. Two destroyers, each for two squares. 2 submarines, each for a square.
- Players will take turns shooting at the other player to begin the game. You must announce the name of the square you aim at while making the turn.
- If the other player hits a portion of its fleet, they must yell “hit,” and if they miss the finish line, they must shout “miss.”
- The winner of the game is the one who sinks every battleship owned by the opposition.
Sprouts
The pen-and-paper game Sprouts is well known for its mathematical features. Mathematicians John Horton Conway and Michael S. Patterson developed it for the first time at Cambridge University in the early 1960s.
There are just two players in the game. Because of its distinctive gameplay and strategy, it is one of the games that are similar to tic-tac-toe.
How to play
- The game will begin with multiple spots drawn on a piece of paper placed on the board.
- The players are then required to move and take action.
- They must draw a line from each sport’s single area on the field to its own back.
- They must ensure that the line does not pass another area or cross another line.
- On the line, they can draw a point.
- They must ensure that no more than three lines emerge from a single location.
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Bulls and Cows
Cows and Bulls Pigs and bulls, cows and bulls, and guessing games are some names. It is a two- or three-player code-breaking mind or paper & pencil game.
It is a board game that predates widely promoted others, such as Mastermind and the well-known hit Wordle. One of the best tic-tac-toe substitutes is this.
How to play
- The person who is going first must come up with a four-letter word.
- The opposing player must guess the four-letter word.
- The chooser must provide hints to the guesser as he makes his guesses. The chooser must say Cow if the guesser provides one accurate letter but is in the incorrect position. The chooser must say bull if the guesser mentions one accurate letter in the right place.
- The guesser’s goal is to guess the response in the fewest possible turns.
- The rule states that just one point must be added to the score if the word contains one of the repeated letters.
Mastermind
Mastermind is a challenging word puzzle that two players often play. The first player in the game must attempt to decipher the code narrated by their opponent.
Both a board and pen and paper can be used to play the game. The sophistication and originality of your opponent determine the game’s level of security. It is among the top tic tac toe games.
How to play
- Start by requesting a code from your opponent.
- You have to make a first guess as a code breaker.
- Utilizing the white and red little pegs to indicate how effective the clue was, ask the code breaker to confirm whether you are on the right track or not.
- Continue speculating and be warned that if you get it wrong there won’t be any more guesses.
- The loser is the one who correctly predicts the score.
Paper Soccer
An abstract strategy game is paper soccer, also called paper hockey. Who is the President is played on a square grid similar to a hockey or soccer field?
The core game mechanics involve each player taking turns while extending a line indicating where a ball should be. This continues until it hits the two target spaces on a grid. It is a fantastic pen-and-paper game similar to tic-tac-toe because of its distinctive gameplay.
How to play
- The ball boy must be moved by the players, who must move it in turns, painting a line from its present location to the new one as determined by them.
- Players can only move one square in a diagonal, vertical, or horizontal direction.
- Along with the lines on the pitch, players are not permitted to move on previously established lines.
- The winner is the one who completes their task first.
Pops
Tic-Tac-Toe and Pops are comparable and entertaining games. Its gameplay, aesthetic, and perspective are comparable to most of the games on this list.
Turn-based addition of O or P into any grid box is the game’s goal. A gamer must create POP. The last player can claim the term to add any letter from the previously specified phrase. After making one POP, he or she has the option to take another risk.
How to play
- Make a paper grid box.
- To determine who performed more pops in the end, make sure you and your companion use different pens or pencils.
- Any player may begin the game.
- As many pops as you can, try to make them.
- You’ll all count who made more pops after the game ended, whether due to time running out or the paper getting filled.
- Whoever scores more pops wins.
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SOS Pen and Paper Game
A grid of squares of any size, often 3 × 3, is used to play SOS. Two players try to label consecutive squares with SOS in a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal pattern.
Once a player succeeds, they go on to the next turn until they run out of creations. On their turn, players may play either a S or an O. One player circles their letters, while the other crosses a line through theirs to distinguish between them. (They may also use pens of various colours.) The game ends as a draw if neither player receives an SOS.
Games with pencils or pens and paper offer a quick and simple response to the cries of “I’m bored!” Anytime and anywhere can be used to play these games.
So, grab a notepad or pencil and challenge a buddy, launch a group game at your next party, or use our selection of enjoyable games to educate your youngster on the importance of strategic thinking.
Conclusion
The games mentioned above are all excellent alternatives to tic tac toe. Both mental effort-intensive games and games with extremely simple gameplay are represented on the list.
After reading this article, we hope you have a greater variety of games to choose from if you become tired of playing tic-tac-toe.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you enjoy playing tic-tac-toe, we propose Bulls and Cows, Sprout, Battleship, Pictionary, dots and boxes, X and 0, and Paper Soccer as some of the greatest and most suitable games for you.
Dots and Boxes is a traditional pen-and-paper game similar to tic-tac-toe. It’s not the best version, but if you like tic-tac-toe and want a game with a few more enhanced features but similar gameplay, then that’s what you should play.
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