2048
Slide tiles with the arrow keys or a swipe. Matching tiles merge into their sum — reach 2048 and beyond.
Arrow keys or WASD on desktop · swipe on touch screens
About 2048
2048 is played on a 4×4 grid. Each move slides every tile as far as it can go in one direction; when two tiles carrying the same number collide, they merge into a single tile holding their sum, and that value is added to your score. After every move that actually changes the board, a new tile — usually a 2, occasionally a 4 — appears in an empty space.
A tile can only merge once per move. Sliding a row of 2, 2, 2, 2 left produces 4, 4, not a single 8 — the two pairs merge independently, but a newly-created tile never merges again in the same move. Getting this rule right is the difference between a real 2048 implementation and a broken one, so it was verified against several hand-checked cases before anything else in this game was built.
The game ends when the board is completely full and no move in any direction would merge anything. Reaching the 2048 tile itself shows a win message with the option to keep playing past it — plenty of players keep going for 4096 and higher once they've reached the original goal.
Your best score is saved locally on your device between visits. Nothing about your game is uploaded anywhere.
Frequently asked questions
Can two different numbers ever merge?
No — only two tiles with the exact same number merge, and they always combine into their sum (which is always the next power of two, since every tile starts as 2 or 4).
What happens after I reach 2048?
You get a win message with the option to keep playing on the same board — the grid doesn't reset, so you can continue merging toward 4096 and beyond if you want to.
Why didn't my move do anything?
A move that wouldn't change the board at all (nothing to slide, nothing to merge in that direction) is simply ignored, and no new tile appears — try a different direction.
How is the game actually lost?
Only when the board is completely full and no direction would merge anything, even a single pair. As long as one merge is still possible somewhere, the game continues.
Can I play on a phone?
Yes — swipe in any direction on the board itself; the same rules apply as pressing an arrow key.