Product Description

The rules are simple: try to build a row of four checkers while keeping your opponent from doing the same. Sounds easy, but it's not! The vertical strategy creates a unique challenge: you must think in a whole new way to block your opponent's moves! For 2 players. Game includes: grid, two end supports, 21 black checkers and 21 red checkers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #864 in Toys & Games
• Brand: Hasbro
• Model: 4430
• Dimensions: 10.60" h x 10.50" w x 2.00" l, 1.18 pounds

Features

• Connect Four is a vertical game of tic-tac-toe, but with a twist - you have to get four in a row!
• The first player to get four checkers lined up in a row in any direction--horizontal, vertical, or diagonal--wins the game
• Game includes: grid, two end supports, 21 black checkers and 21 red checkers
• This game is centuries old, Captain James Cook used to play it with his fellow officers on his long voyages, and so it has also been called "Captain's Mistress"
• For 2 Players

Editorial Review
Connect Four is like vertical tic-tac-toe. Unlike tic-tac-toe, however (as the name suggests), you must get four checkers in a row. One player has red checkers; the other has black checkers. To play, alternate turns at dropping one of checkers down a slot at the top of the upright grid. The first player to get four checkers lined up in a row in any direction--horizontal, vertical, or diagonal--wins the game. --Alison Golder

From the Manufacturer
Enjoy this classic vertical checkers game that's fun whether you're up-and-down, across or diagonal! Just build a row of four checkers in any direction while blocking your opponent to win!

Customer Reviews

Great Game. Not Durable
I love Connect 4. I loved playing when I was a child, and now that I'm a parent I love playing with my children. Sometimes we even get crazy and play Connect 3, or Connect 5.

Connect 4 is a classic game that is sure to be popular for years to come. It is a strategy game played in a non-traditional vertical style with players alternating turns hoping to connect 4 checkers either in a straight line, or diagonally. It is extremely easy to learn, and plays in under 5 minutes. With Connect 4 you can have a lot of fun in 30 minutes.

The only problem with the game that I have is it's cheap plastic construction. It isn't durable at all. I wish there was a sturdier alternative available. I would pay extra money for it. In any case, do not let the less than perfect durability factor prevent you from owning and enjoying Connect 4.

A wonderful game for pattern building
Despite the recommended age, my daughter started playing Connect-4 when she was 4. By the time she was 5 she could beat most adults. Now, at 6, she can beat me about half the time. She started with just a strategy for winning. Then she learned how to fight someone else's strategy, but lost her offensive moves. Finally she graduated to clever offense and anticipating my moves. She's learned to see groups, to see geometric patterns that rotate, to think several steps ahead. It's that time dimension that's really given her the edge.

What's particularly effective about the game is that the rules are so simple that she can concentrate on the content of the game.

My only complaint is that after hundreds of playings the plastic slider at the bottom has become a bit loose, and several complex games came to an abrupt finale when the checkers were released unintentionally under the weight.

Once You Drop, You Just Can't Stop . . .
Whenever it was not possible to go outside for recess during my grade-school days (I'm a college sophomore now), there were many games that we would play indoors to pass the time.

Some kids drew on the blackboard. Other kids just got together in groups and talked. And then there were kids like me that played Connect Four.

Connect Four is extremely habit-forming because you get totally engaged in the game-play. It takes skill, a little bit of luck, and a decent amount of humor to play. We would have Connect Four tournaments all the time in grade school, and they would get pretty competitive sometimes!

Fun: This game is one of the best out there. Once you catch on, which doesn't take long since the rules of the game are easy, it is great to play. If you like games that will make you think and strategize, games that force you to outwit your opponent, this is a good game to reach for.

Educational Value: It keeps the little ones from getting into things. That was always my experience with it. Why go getting myself into mischief when I can go head-to-head with someone two feet in front of me? Little ones will find this a fun counting game.

Durability: The only thing that could probably dampen the fun of the game is losing any of the Checkers to the game. Either that or someone steps on the plastic frame, cracking it or just plain breaking it. But this is not something that people should worry too much about. This game is very durable; it holds up well.

In short, this is a classic game that has stood the test of time. And there are many ways to play it, not just connecting four Checkers in a row. Many games come and go, but Connect Four is a treasure that will last forever.