Play Gomoku with a Friend — Two Players, One Screen

No second device, no account, no app: our two-player mode puts the computer aside and lets two people share the board on the same phone, tablet or laptop. Here is how it works and how to get the most out of it.

How to start a two-player game

1. Open the gomoku board.
2. Set Mode to 2 players (one screen).
3. Pick the rules — free-style for a quick casual game, renju if you want black's forbidden moves enforced.
4. Press New game. Black starts, then white, alternating until someone makes five in a row.

Everything else behaves the same as the computer game: the board highlights the last move, the winning line turns red, and Undo takes back the last stone (one stone in two-player mode — the player who just moved gets the turn back).

Same-screen play tips

Use undo as a take-back, not a debate. In casual games, letting a beginner undo an obvious blunder keeps the game going. In serious ones, agree before the first move whether undo is allowed at all.

Decide the colour rule first. Black moves first and has the advantage — that is exactly why renju exists. A simple fair way to start: one player places a stone in the centre, the other chooses black or white.

Pass the phone, not the move. On a phone, the board is big enough for one finger but not always for two people leaning in; the touch preview (press to aim, lift to place) makes accidental moves less likely.

Why two-player mode is worth having

Gomoku is a folk game — it was never designed to be played alone. Two-player mode makes the site useful at a table: a coffee shop, a classroom, a train, a living room. It also lets you test the opening principles against a human, which is a very different experience from playing a computer that never gets bored.

And because there is no server involved, there is no sign-up, no waiting room and no disconnect. Both players see the same board the whole time.

What about playing a friend who is not in the room?

At the moment the site is local-only: two players, one device. If you want a remote game, the honest answer is that you need a server to relay moves — something we may add later. For now, the fastest remote workaround is a video call with both cameras on the board, or a physical board.

Last updated: November 2026