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Tic-Tac-Bro

You've played tic-tac-toe a thousand times.

Never against your big brother. He says tic-tac-toe is for babies, so he "fixed" it, and now he's bet he can beat the whole table by himself.

  • Players2–4 + Big Bro
  • Time20–40 min
  • To win3-in-a-row x5
Tell me when it's out Read the rules (PDF)
In playtesting The Tic-Tac-Bro box: Big Bro, chin in hand, dreaming up the Tic-Tac-BRO! logo on a teal sunburst. 2–4 players, 20–40 minutes.
How it plays

You already know how to get three in a row

Everyone gets their own board. Big Bro doesn't need one. He plays on yours.

  1. The Row A card: place a marker in any open cell in Row A, on any board.

    Play a card

    Your card says where you can place a marker: a row, a column, a corner. On your board, or on anyone else's.

  2. The back of a Sibling Deck card: a board with a purple X, a gray pentagon, an orange triangle and a yellow circle.

    Get three in a row

    Get 3-in-a-row on your own board 5 times to win. You can also play on other players' boards to keep them from winning.

  3. Big Bro's Table Flip card: clears every marker off the fullest board.

    Survive Big Bro

    Big Bro plays too. Sometimes he's naughty and sometimes he's nice. Try to beat him!

  • Broadcast, with a grinning Big Bro: place each board owner's own color at an Order's cell on every board.
    Happy
  • Dibs, with a scowling Big Bro: place his red BRO! marker at an Order's cell on every board.
    Angry
Meet Big Bro

He's not really that mean. He just really wants to win.

Big Bro doesn't take turns like you do. He runs his own deck, and every card comes with a mood. You can see it on his face.

  • Happy. He lets you place your own color. Real progress, for once.
  • Angry. He drops his red “BRO!” marker to jam your line or steal it.
  • Unfair. Big bro doesn't have to get 3-in-a-row. Instead, he tries to fill in a row to score.
The cards

28 Sibling cards. Every one puts your color on the board.

Hold three, play one. And Big Bro's deck? We won't spoil it. Finding out what he can do is half the fun.

  • Row A: place a marker in any open cell in Row A.
    RowAny open cell in that row.
  • Column 2: place a marker in any open cell in Column 2.
    ColumnAny open cell in that column.
  • Corner: place a marker on any open corner.
    CornerAny open corner.
  • Diamond: place a marker on any open edge cell.
    DiamondAny of the four edge cells.
  • Move: move any marker to the same cell on a different board.
    MoveTake any marker to the same cell on another board.
  • Sacrifice: remove a marker from your board, draw 2, then play up to 2 more.
    SacrificeClear a cell on your board, then play two more cards.