Quarto is a two-player strategy board game played on a 4×4 board with 16 pieces. Each piece is tall or short, dark or light, round or square, solid or hollow. You win by placing the fourth piece in a row, column or diagonal where all four pieces share at least one of those traits. The twist: you never choose the piece you place. Your opponent hands it to you. It was invented by Swiss mathematician Blaise Müller and published by Gigamic in 1991. A game takes 10 to 20 minutes, there's no luck involved, and with perfect play it's a draw.
About us: we make Quads, a free game built on the same mechanic. It isn't affiliated with Gigamic, which publishes Quarto. Facts about the board game here come from Gigamic and Wikipedia. The statistics are our own, and each links to how we got it.
The pieces
Quarto has 16 pieces, and every one is different. Each has four traits, and each trait has two versions:
| Trait | Versions | Pieces with each |
|---|---|---|
| Height | Tall or short | 8 and 8 |
| Colour | Dark or light | 8 and 8 |
| Shape | Round or square | 8 and 8 |
| Top | Solid or hollow | 8 and 8 |
Two versions of four traits make 2×2×2×2 = 16 combinations, one piece each. The pieces don't belong to either player. Both of you use the same 16. More in the 16 Quarto pieces explained.
How a turn works
- The board starts empty. The first player chooses a piece and hands it to the second player.
- The second player places it on any empty cell, then chooses a piece from those left and hands it back.
- Players keep alternating: place what you were given, then give.
Every turn is two decisions, and the second matters most. Before you hand over a piece, check whether your opponent could win with it anywhere on the board.
How to win
Place the fourth piece of a row, column or diagonal where all four pieces share at least one trait: four tall, four dark, four round, four hollow, or any other. Only one trait has to match. It doesn't matter who placed the first three. In the official game you claim the win by announcing "Quarto!"
If all 16 pieces are placed and no line matches, the game is a draw. That's rarer than it sounds. Only 1.98% of boards filled at random have no winning line, so a draw takes careful play from both sides.
Variants
- The 2×2 square rule. Many editions add an option where four matching pieces in a 2×2 block also win, for 19 winning shapes instead of 10. It makes games much sharper. See the square variant, measured. Quads always plays this way.
- Fewer traits for beginners. Play with only some traits counting, for example colour and shape. A 1994 teachers' review noted that the rules include variants for beginners and experienced players.
- Make or print your own set. No box? Print a board and pieces or make a set from household items.
Quarto or "Quatro"?
The game is Quarto, with the R before the T. Many people search for it as "Quatro", which is easy to type: quatro is Portuguese for four. Searches for "quatro game" or "quatro board game" are almost always looking for this game. Don't confuse it with:
- Connect Four, where players drop their own coloured discs into a vertical grid. Here's how Quarto compares with Connect Four and tic-tac-toe.
- Quarto as a page size in printing and book-making, also unrelated.
Is Quarto hard? Is it luck?
There's no luck in Quarto. Nothing is hidden and nothing is random: both players see the whole board and every piece left. Games like this are called abstract strategy games.
The rules take two minutes; the game takes practice. Some numbers that explain why:
- Of the 1,820 ways to pick four pieces, 536 share a trait (29.45%), so winning combinations are everywhere.
- A line of three pieces sharing one trait can be finished by 5 of the other 13 pieces. If they share two traits, by 9.
- In games between strong computer players, the number of pieces safe to hand over fell from nearly all of them early on to under 2 by the late game. The endgame guide shows the curve.
Quarto was solved by computer in 1998 by Luc Goossens: with perfect play neither player can force a win. Real games are almost always decisive, because one wrong hand-off loses on the spot. More in Is Quarto solved?.
Quick facts
| Designer | Blaise Müller (Switzerland) |
| Publisher | Gigamic (France), since 1991 |
| Players | 2 |
| Ages | 8 and up (Gigamic) |
| Playing time | 10 to 20 minutes (Gigamic) |
| Board | 4×4, 16 cells |
| Pieces | 16, shared by both players |
| Winning lines | 10 (4 rows, 4 columns, 2 diagonals), or 19 with 2×2 squares |
| Game length | At most 16 placements. 12.7 on average in our strong computer games |
| Solved? | Yes, a draw with perfect play (Luc Goossens, 1998) |
| Awards include | Super As d'Or 1992, Mensa Select 1993, Spiel des Jahres selection list 1993 |
The full story is in the history of Quarto, and more numbers are in Quarto by the numbers.
Where to play
- On a table: Gigamic's wooden Quarto, in classic and mini sizes.
- Online against people or computers: we compared every free option in where to play Quarto online.
- In your browser right now: Quads is free, with five computer levels, two-player mode on one screen and a daily puzzle. It's the same mechanic, with 2×2 squares always on. Here's how Quads and Quarto compare.
Liked it? Try one of these games like Quarto next.
Frequently asked questions
What is the game Quarto?
A two-player strategy board game on a 4x4 board with 16 unique pieces. Your opponent chooses the piece you place, and you win by completing a line of four pieces that share at least one trait.
How do you play Quarto?
Hand your opponent a piece; they place it anywhere and hand you one of the remaining pieces. Whoever places the fourth piece of a row, column or diagonal whose pieces share a trait wins.
Is it Quarto or Quatro?
Quarto. "Quatro" is a common misspelling of the game's name.
Is Quarto a game of luck?
No. There are no dice, cards or hidden information. Both players see everything, so the result depends only on the moves.
What age is Quarto for?
Gigamic recommends Quarto for ages 8 and up.