Dominoes FAQ

It is draw dominoes for one player against the computer, played with a standard double-six set of 28 tiles. You each hold seven tiles, draw from a shared boneyard when stuck, and match tiles end to end along a single line of play. The player who empties their hand — or holds the fewer pips when the game blocks — wins the round and scores the opponent’s remaining pips. First to 100 points wins the match.

Yes. dominogame.app is completely free and runs entirely in your browser. There is nothing to buy, download, or install, and there are no interruptive video ads, premium tiers, or paywalls. Open the page and a table is ready.

No. The game is the website — a 100% browser-based build with no app-store download and no sign-up. Your stats are saved locally in your browser, so there is no login to manage.

Dominoes descend from Chinese tile games and appear in Europe, first in Italy, in the early 18th century. The Western double-six set of 28 tiles became standard, and draw and block dominoes spread worldwide, with especially strong traditions in the Caribbean, Latin America, and the American South.

A single round is quick — a minute or two. A full match to 100 points typically runs three to seven rounds depending on how decisively each one ends, so five to fifteen minutes is normal.

Each player is dealt seven tiles from a shuffled double-six set; the other 14 form the boneyard. The first round is opened by the player holding the heaviest tile. On your turn you add a tile to one open end of the line, matching a half of your tile to the pip value showing there. If you cannot play, you draw from the boneyard until you can, and knock only when it is empty. The round ends when a player plays their last tile or neither player can move.

The boneyard is the 14 tiles left face down after the deal. In draw dominoes, a player who cannot match either open end takes tiles from the boneyard one at a time until they can play. Once the boneyard is empty, a player with no legal tile knocks and passes instead.

When a round ends, the winner scores the total number of pips left in the loser’s hand. If a player went out by placing their last tile, that is the opponent’s whole hand. If the game was blocked, the player with fewer pips wins and scores the opponent’s pip total; an exact tie scores nothing. Match points accumulate round to round until someone reaches 100.

A round is blocked when the boneyard is empty and neither player can add a tile to either open end. Nobody goes out. The hands are compared: the player with the lower pip count wins the round and scores the other hand’s pips. If both hands have the same pip total, the round is a draw and no points are awarded.

In the first round of a match, whoever holds the highest double opens with it; if neither player has a double, the heaviest single tile opens. In every round after that, the player who won the previous round leads and may open with any tile in their hand.

No. Drawing and knocking are only for when you are genuinely stuck. If any tile in your hand matches an open end, you must play it. The Draw and Knock buttons stay disabled until you have no legal move.

Drag a tile to an open end, or tap the tile then tap the end. A tile that fits only one end plays on a single tap. On the keyboard, left and right arrows select a tile, Up or Enter plays it, comma and period pick the left or right end, D draws, K knocks, N starts a new match, and M toggles sound.

Draw dominoes. When you cannot match either end you take tiles from the boneyard until you can. Block dominoes skips the boneyard entirely and forces an immediate pass; this game uses the more common draw ruleset, and a blocked game is still resolved on pip count when the boneyard is exhausted.

Neither. A double is laid across the line so it reads clearly, but it opens the same single number on that side and does not create a spinner or side branch. Its pip value counts normally toward a hand’s score.

The computer plays a solid, quick heuristic rather than a perfect solver. It clears its heaviest playable tiles first, gets doubles out while the matching number is still live, and favours ends that keep its own hand flexible. It is a fair game to learn against and beatable with good counting and tempo.

No. The deal can leave you with a heavy, awkward hand, and a blocked game can go against you on pips no matter how you play. Draw dominoes rewards good decisions over many rounds — a match to 100 usually takes several rounds, so a bad one is rarely fatal.

Shed heavy tiles early, keep a mental count of which numbers have been played, and try to leave the line showing values you still hold. When your hand is light, play for the block instead of chasing the win. Small pip savings each round add up across a match to 100.

When you have a choice, open with a heavy tile you would hate to be caught with, ideally one whose numbers you hold more of so you can answer your own end. In the first round you may not have a choice — the highest double is forced.

The current streak counts consecutive match wins. Losing a match — the computer reaching 100 first — resets the current streak to zero. Your longest streak is kept separately as a personal best.

Your matches played and won, rounds won, best winning margin, and current and longest streaks are saved locally in your browser. Nothing is sent to a server and there is no account. Because the save lives on the device, a different phone, a new browser profile, or cleared site data looks like a fresh start. A match in progress is not saved if you close the tab.

Yes. The layout is built for touch: tap a tile to pick it up and tap an open end to place it, or drag directly. Your hand, the line of play, and the score all fit on one portrait screen, and starting a new match is instant with no page reload.

The game needs a connection to load the page the first time. After that, some browsers may keep the tab playable without a network, but there is no dedicated offline app or installer.

Open Stats from the game menu and use Reset progress, then confirm with the second tap. That clears matches played and won, rounds won, best margin, and both streaks on this browser. It cannot be undone.

Any current browser with JavaScript: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari on desktop, plus their mobile versions. If tiles do not respond, update the browser, allow scripts for this site, and reload.