Learn: the strategy player’s library

Guides, history, and ideas for people who like games where thinking is the whole point — from the makers of Oustwit. No news, no hype: everything here is written to still be useful in ten years.

Oustwit is a small, pure game — a 6×6 board, two players, no luck — and it comes from a long tradition: five thousand years of humans across every culture sitting down for a fair fight of minds. This library is our tour of that tradition. Some of it will make you a better player. Some of it is simply a good story. All of it is written in plain English for curious people, whether you’ve studied chess openings for years or just deleted your fifth match-three game out of boredom.

The abstract strategy world

First shelf: the family Oustwit belongs to. What abstract strategy games are, the classics and the modern renaissance, the history, the world tour, and the shared language strong players speak.

• What makes a game an abstract strategy game?

  Every hobby has a definition it loves to argue about, and “abstract strategy” is ours.

• The classic abstract games everyone should know

  A handful of games have been beating the field test of centuries — some of them millennia.

• The modern abstract renaissance

  For most of history, abstract games arrived anonymously and took centuries to settle.

• A short history of board games

  Boards and pieces show up almost as soon as cities do.

• Push, pull, slide: how pieces move

  Most classic games move one piece at a time and leave the rest of the board alone.

• Three in a row: the oldest goal in games

  “Get three in a row” might be the oldest victory condition in the world — morris boards are carved into ancient temple roofs.

• Small boards, deep games

  Bigger isn't deeper.

• Strategy games around the world

  Strategy is a universal language with strong regional accents.

• Why great games never die

  Most entertainment ages.

• The language of strategy

  Strong players in every strategy game end up speaking the same language, even when they've never met each other's games.

More shelves on the way

Getting better: how to study, practice, and break plateaus · Oustwit mastery: openings, tactics, and rating climbs · Two-player life: rivalries, couples, and long-distance duels · Playing on the go: commutes, flights, and five-minute sessions · AI opponents and solo practice · Competitive culture: ratings, ladders, and tournaments · The thinking mind: focus, tilt, and game theory · Game design: elegance, balance, and win conditions · The wider hobby: families, kids, and communities.

Oustwit is free for Android and iOS — five-minute pure-strategy duels, online or offline. Learn the rules in a minute.