Turn-based territory game
Dots-and-boxes with diagonals, played for ground. Draw a line, close a shape, and the space inside is yours — a triangle scores one, a whole cell scores two. Claim again and the turn stays with you.
- Lines run straight or diagonal — diagonals cut the triangles
- Every claim buys a bonus turn, up to four moves in a row
- Daily board, bots, and private games with friends by link
Free · no install · works offline · sign in with Google to save your progress.
1New Daily board
2–4Players per match
3Board sizes
5-10minTypical match
How it plays
Five rules. That's the whole game.
You'll understand it in thirty seconds and still be losing to it an hour later.
1
Join two dots
On your turn, draw one line between two touching dots — straight, or diagonal to any of the eight neighbours. Lines can't cross, so each cell holds one diagonal or the other.
2
Close a shape, take the ground
The moment your line completes a closed shape on open ground, it pays its whole area. A full cell is worth twice a triangle — the wider you close, the more it's worth.
3
Keep the turn
Every claim buys another turn — up to three in a row, so a single turn can run to four moves. Setting up and reading those chains is the whole skill.
4
Nothing is ever sealed
Cut into ground someone else holds and it pays its full area, exactly as open ground does. Carving up your own pays the same again — worth doing, and it's how a board gets finished, since play only ends once every region is down to single triangles. Every shape you close is worth what it measures, every time somebody closes it, so a big region left whole is the most valuable thing on the board — to you and to them alike.
5
Ground gets shared, not taken
Cutting into someone takes nothing off them — they keep every point they earned. What they lose is having it to themselves. The region ends up held by both of you, in proportion to what each has put in, and it's drawn as a blend of your two colours. Your score is your share of the regions actually on the board, so the picture and the numbers always agree.
Ways to play
One game, four ways in
The same board, whether you want two minutes alone or a match against a friend.
Daily Diamond
One board a day, the same for everyone on the planet. One attempt, scored on the margin you beat the bot by. Build a streak — with rest days so a single miss doesn't wipe it.
Play a bot
Three difficulties, entirely on your device and working offline. The hard bot weighs your reply and never leaves a free claim on the table.
Private games by link
Start a game, share the link, they join. Two to four players, no friend requests and nobody to add — just send the code.
Challenge links
Hand a finished game to someone as a link and they play the exact same board you did. It needs no server and never expires.
What's in it
Everything in the game today
No roadmap promises — this is what you get when you open it.
🎓
Built-in tutorial
A guided board that teaches the rules by making you draw the lines, not by reading at you.
🎛️
Three board sizes
5×5 cells for a quick one, 6×6 as standard, 7×7 when you want the long game.
⏱️
Turn clock
Online turns run on a 45-second server clock, so nobody can stall a match to death.
📱
Installable & offline
Add it to your home screen as an app. The Daily, bot games and challenge links all run with no network.
🔥
Streaks & XP
Every finished match pays XP and tracks your record, and the Daily keeps a streak with banked rest days.
🎲
A fair toss
A die tumbles on screen to decide who moves first — no more silently finding yourself seated second.
Why it's different
Not the dots game you played at school
Three rules that change the whole shape of it.
Unlike dots & boxes
Shapes, not squares
Any closed shape scores, not just a one-cell box, and your score is the area you enclose — so the interesting move is usually the greedy one.
Unlike most turn games
The ground is never sealed
A claim is never walled off. Anyone can draw into taken ground and score inside it while the first claim still counts, so totals climb well past the board's own area.
Unlike grid puzzles
Diagonals change everything
Lines reach all eight neighbours, so shapes are triangles and wedges as often as squares — and every diagonal you draw blocks the one that would cross it.
Play
Start a game
The full game runs in your browser. Android is on the way.
● Available now
Play in your browser
The complete game — tutorial, the Daily, bot matches and private games with a friend. Nothing to install, works on phone and desktop.
Coming soon
Android app
A native build with haptics and offline bot play is in testing now, and will land on Google Play shortly.
Questions
Before you start
The things people ask in the first two minutes.
Is Diamonds free?
Yes. The whole game is free to play, and there are no ads.
What's the Daily Diamond?
One board a day, generated from the date and identical for everyone worldwide. You get a single attempt against a seeded bot, and your score is the margin you beat it by. Playing keeps a streak going, and banked rest days mean one missed day doesn't reset it.
Do I need an account?
You sign in with Google so your XP and match record follow you between devices. We never see your password, and you can delete your account and its data at any time from Settings.
Do I need someone to play against?
No. There are three bot difficulties and a fresh Daily board every day, so there's always a game waiting. When you do want a human, start a game and send them the link.
How is this different from dots and boxes?
Three ways: any closed shape scores rather than only single boxes; your score is your share of the board rather than a tally of what you once took; and claimed ground is never sealed, so the endgame is fought over territory that's already been claimed — and regions end up genuinely shared.
Can I play offline?
Yes. Add it to your home screen and the Daily, bot games and any challenge link run entirely on your device with no network. Only online multiplayer needs a connection.
How long is a match?
Five to ten minutes on the standard 6×6 board — it runs until no line can be drawn anywhere, so the closing stretch is a fight to hold what you already took. Drop to 5×5 and it's over faster; 7×7 runs considerably longer.
Which platforms is it on?
It runs in any modern browser today, on phone or desktop, and installs as an app. An Android build is in testing and will be on Google Play soon.
Ready to claim some ground?
Free, no install, and your first match is about thirty seconds away.