Variations on a Classic: Dots and Squares

The classic game of dots and squares can keep you occupied for hours in class, or in a waiting room, but it can get boring... Here are some variations on the game that take it to a new level of strategy and thought, while still keeping the same classic style of fun that makes this game a favorite when sitting through particularly boring lessons. Because of the way this game can be played, on grid paper, it will appear as if you are taking notes or otherwise occupied in studious activities in class. It is fun, easy to set up, and infinitely expandable for hours of enjoyment.

Step 1 The Basic Board

The basic board of the game is generally a rectangle, within which may be drawn dots to create a grid. It is recommended however to use grid paper, as this is much more convenient, and saves time for setup of the board. You can use any size paper for this really, but I've found that a standard school grid notebook works best. Ideally, for a pocket-sized game, look for a small compact notebook. For a 10-15 minute game, the rectangle should be somewhere around 8 x 8. When you've got the hang of a simple rectangular board, you can try experimenting with different shapes (more on that later.)

Comments

[the poodleo]

that's pretty cool. yo should try doing something like this for other games, like battleship or something. id love to see that.

[xboxdude]

great drawings dude! love it man.

[dungeon runner]

Wow, this is great! I personally was never much for D&B until now. Very well written 'ible.


-Y

[PKTraceur]

Another tip on wasting time in class: Draw the following: Draw cubes. Race your friends, see wo can draw the most cubes in the classs period, 15 minutes, get to 100, 200, etc. Draw parabolas. Lest you'll be doing something related to math and science... or just not paying attention... Draw fractals. Make chainmaille. No joke, I actually got away with spending a whole hour, connecting all of the spare minutes in the day. After large tests, this is great. Make penguns. Shoot thy friends, and they shall be friends no more. :) Sketch. Alot. Create plans to get away from zombies? There are millions of things you can do with the good old pen and paper. "Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword has obviously never encountered automatic weapons." -PKT

[jonaboy110]

Wow. You can sketch pretty well.... *points to two grids on last step...*

[coolboi]

cool eh!...

[casey321b]

they should ttly have an online game like this. I used to play with my sister but not shes in college :( that how i though of the idea. I think we should all try to thing of powerups.

[Aurimasmb]

I'm considering making the game in Flash Actionscript and posting it to my blog: http://abxor.blogspot.com/
I totally agree, please, any suggestions you have I will consider and incorporate if I think they are good. This will be an ongoing project, an 'open-source' squares game if you will, so by all means, I encourage participation.

[choji]

this game has became a trend with my friends.thx a lot

[egreen767]

Im leaving for a long road trip tomorrow... i'm totally gonna play this. thanks!

[Toadsoup]

I like the idea of powerups added to the game. That looks like it would be much more interesting.

[Aurimasmb]

thanks, if anyone has any questions or suggestions,or if something is unclear, please speak up.

[idiotjohn]

GOOD IDEA!