2048

How to play 2048

2048 is the puzzle phenomenon where you slide numbered tiles around a 4×4 grid, merging matching pairs into bigger numbers. Two 2s become a 4, two 4s become an 8, and so on — until you build the 2048 tile and win. (Or keep going past it.)

Controls

• ← → ↑ ↓ — slide all tiles in a direction
• W A S D — same, alternate keys
• Swipe — on touch devices, swipe in any direction

Tips & strategy

• Pick a corner. Decide on a corner (most players use bottom-right) and keep your highest tile pinned there. Never undo the pin.
• Build a snake. Order your largest tiles in descending zig-zag rows. The tile order should let you merge top-down without freeing the corner.
• Avoid the up move. If you're cornered at the bottom, never press up unless absolutely forced — one wrong up move can wreck your structure.
• Watch the empty cells. New tiles spawn in empty cells. The fewer you have, the closer you are to losing — merge to free up space.

About 2048

Originally written in March 2014 by Italian developer Gabriele Cirulli over a single weekend, 2048 was inspired by 1024 and Threes! It went viral within days and racked up over 4 million unique players in its first week. What made 2048 famous was the open-source, free, no-install, mobile-friendly version Cirulli released to GitHub.

Frequently asked

How do I play 2048? Use the arrow keys (or WASD, or swipe) to slide every tile in that direction. Tiles with matching numbers merge into one tile with the sum. Make the 2048 tile to win.

Is 2048 free? Yes — no signup, no downloads, no installs.

Can I keep playing past 2048? Yes — reaching 2048 triggers a win banner, but the game keeps going. Some players target 4096 or higher.

Does my high score save? Yes — your best score and highest tile are stored locally in your browser.

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