Introduction to 2048
2048 is a simple single player video game where one person slides numbered titles either horizontally or vertically (Up, Down, Left, Right) on a 4 by 4 board.
When tiles are sliding, they travel all the way up, down, left or right across the board unless there is another tile with a different number that prevents them from travelling any further.
When the player makes a move, another tile appears in a random postion on this 4 by 4 board. The title that appears on the board is usually a 2 or 4.
Each numbered tile in this game is a power of 2 (2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048) and each numbered tile has a different colour.
The starting board contains 2 numbers (usually 2 and/or 4)and these numbers are placed in random positions on the 4 by 4 board.
Figure 1: Sample Starting Board
Stacking numbered tiles in 2048
If 2 numbered titles have the same number and are in the same row/column, they can be stacked on each other to form 1 new numbered tile that is the sum of the 2 previous numbered titles as shown below in Figure 3.
Figure 2: Before 2 numbered tiles form 1 larger tile
Figure 3: After the 2 numbered tiles form 1 larger tile
In Figure 3 above, the numbered tile with the number 4 is formed by adding the two tiles with the number 2 from Figure 2.
In addition, in Figure 3, the numbered tile with the number 2 is a tile that randomly appeared after the person chose to stack the two tiles from Figure 2.
The objective of 2048
The objective of the game is to stack numbered titles in order to form the 2048 tile.
Before forming a tile with the number 2048:
- Two tiles with the number 2 need to form a larger tile with the number 4.
- Two tiles with the number 4 need to form a larger tile with the number 8.
- Two tiles with the number 8 need to form a larger tile with the number 16.
- Two tiles with the number 16 need to form a larger tile with the number 32.
- Two tiles with the number 32 need to form a larger tile with the number 64.
- Two tiles with the number 64 need to form a larger tile with the number 128.
- Two tiles with the number 128 need to form a larger tile with the number 256.
- Two tiles with the number 256 need to form a larger tile with the number 512.
- Two tiles with the number 512 need to form a larger tile with the number 1024.
- Two tiles with the number 1024 will be able to form a larger tile with the number 2048.
Reasons to play 2048
- 2048 helps enhances basic arithmetic.
- 2048 improves estimation skills.
- 2048 develops strategical thinking.