Play Connect Four on a video call

The board has 7 columns and 6 rows. Players take turns dropping one disc into a column; it falls to the lowest empty space. The first to line up four of their own discs in a row, horizontally, vertically or diagonally, wins. If all 42 spaces fill with no four in a row, it's a draw.

Connect Four was solved in 1988: with perfect play, the player who goes first can always win, as long as their first disc goes in the middle column.

• Start in the middle column. It's part of more possible lines of four than any other column.
• Control the center. Discs in the middle three columns do more work than discs on the edges.
• Think in threats, not lines. A threat is three in a row with the fourth space empty. Two threats at once usually win.
• Watch what's under the empty spaces. A threat only matters when the space below it fills. Don't drop the disc that lets your opponent complete their line.
• Build threats on the right row. If you go first, threats on odd rows (1st, 3rd, 5th from the bottom) tend to win the endgame; going second, even rows do.
• Block diagonals early. Beginners spot horizontal and vertical lines and miss diagonals.

Without a shared board, Connect Four is hard on a regular video call: one person needs a physical set (or a drawn grid) and has to drop the other player's discs for them while they call out column numbers 1 to 7.

On Chatingly the board sits next to the video and syncs instantly, so you can watch their face when they realize they missed your diagonal.

More ideas in 12 games for any video call.