Tic Tac Toe Tactics

Logic Level 2

Assume that you are playing a tic-tac-toe game with an opponent. You play as X X while your opponent plays as O O .

The game is played as follows:

Find all the possible grid tiles where you can put an X X -mark that will help you guarantee a win under best play.

a a b b c c d d e e Either a a or b b Either b b or e e

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12 solutions

Matthew Merolla
Jul 1, 2016

B and E both guarantee the win but so does A in two turns. A forces an "O" in the middle leaving two possible rows of three able to be formed by placing an "X" in the bottom right corner. Your opponent could only block one and so you would win.

Your opponent can just go D or C if he gets the middle one and wins instantly! He doesn't have to bother about blocking you.

Benedikt Werner - 4 years, 10 months ago

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You're right. You will lose if you pick A

James Finlinson - 3 years, 11 months ago

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duh so choose b

C Priyadharshini - 2 years, 1 month ago

Thats correct.

Joshua Olguin - 2 years, 10 months ago

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not correct. think again!

C Priyadharshini - 2 years, 1 month ago

your turn is next so you can choose the middle duh

C Priyadharshini - 2 years, 1 month ago

B is the only correct answer, as your opponent will be chasing you at D , then you would win on C. If he blocks you at C first, you win with a move on D. E is incorrect because he can go to B first, which would leave you to block him at A. It’s stale mate after that. If anyone can can tell me how going to E first and having your opponent (who is playing optimally), not go to B for whatever reason, I am willing to listen and admit I’m wrong.

Ivan Babic - 1 year, 11 months ago

Ok. I was wrong. 5 AM in the morning and I was playing as O, not X. Lol.

Ivan Babic - 1 year, 11 months ago

ONLY B allows a win for X.

Michael Pendergast IV - 1 year, 2 months ago

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B allows a win at A and E. E allows you to win at B and D

Nghia Khau - 1 year, 1 month ago
Jeremy Bansil
May 18, 2015

In order to win this game of tic tac toe, you need to make a fork. However, the only possible grid tiles to put a fork on is b b and e e , since placing a mark on a a , c c , or d d would not make a fork at all. So the answer is Either b b or e e

Hey b is enough to win

Mes Onaldo - 5 years, 3 months ago

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the correct answer is just e! you place the cross on e and you win both ways!

Anu Priya - 5 years, 2 months ago

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If u put on e you'll win because u can go both ways

Jada Boyd - 4 years, 11 months ago

Yes because your opponent would not be able to block both diagonal moves

Takoda Moorhead - 5 years, 2 months ago

yeah I know right

C Priyadharshini - 2 years, 1 month ago

You could also Mark a to guarantee a win. All be it you would need tomake an extra move

Sean Byrne - 5 years, 3 months ago

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Nope.

You - A Opponent - B (to block you) You - D or C Opponent - C or D (depending on your move)

You lose if you go on a.

Colin Kennedy - 2 years, 10 months ago

You could mark A also, since is just mark B, and then you have a sure win, because even if the opponent block you marking A or E, you still have the other one to mark, making B the obvious choice

Frederico Rosa - 5 years, 4 months ago

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A doesn't work because O wins

Howard Dunn - 5 years, 3 months ago

Placing a mark on e still wouldn't guarantee a win though, as the other player could place a mark on b to stop you.

Ethan Howell - 5 years, 7 months ago

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If the opponent places a mark on b, you can play a mark to d for a win on the bottom row.

Nathan Vervaeke - 5 years, 7 months ago

If he puts on 'b' then u just have to put next on 'd' and you win! :) ;)

Swapnil Saste - 5 years, 3 months ago

suppose i place the cross on e and the player puts the o on b; then i can place the cross on d and still win!

Anu Priya - 5 years, 2 months ago

If you put in e "o" (who can only choose one place right now) can put in b and you still have d as a win or "o" can put in d and you'll have b as a win or "o" can be an idiot and put in another box

Thea Langergaard - 5 years ago

Thought I was o.

TJ Hannify - 3 years, 4 months ago

Dammit I read e as c

Joshua Willis - 3 years, 4 months ago

making a mark on e will not guarantee you a win

Abhinav Trivedi - 2 years, 9 months ago

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If you mark an X on e, it forces your opponent to mark O on either b or d, and then you mark an X on either d or b, depending, winning. B and E both force the win.

Brian Egedy - 2 years, 9 months ago

Its only -B-. Because if you do -E- then O will play in the middle leaving you stuck.

Casper Howse - 1 year, 3 months ago

You can't guarantee a win on e, because if the opponent puts on b, you'll be obligated to put on a, than he will put on c (if not stupid) than it's done, game over. The only way to guarantee a win is on b.

Thauer Furtado - 5 years, 4 months ago

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nope. You'll not be obligated to put on a. If he/she puts on b, you'll put on d AND WIN

six mb - 5 years, 3 months ago

If he puts on 'b' then u just have to put next on 'd' and you win! :) ;)

Swapnil Saste - 5 years, 3 months ago

the answer could be anything except c, d.. so try to think logically and don't put in explanations just from your point of view. there are multiple answers for this..

Nivedita Pagar - 5 years ago

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The answer is B or E; A is a loss, and C and D are both draws. It's not a question of point of view: There is only one best answer.

Brian Egedy - 5 years ago

a, b, and e will all guarantee a win, though a would just need an extra move. The best (in my opinion as they are quicker and more efficient choices) would be either b or e.

Nicola McNearney - 5 years ago

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A loses to your opponent's play on B. The only winning moves are B and E.

Brian Egedy - 5 years ago

Hey i told the answer was e. it said i was incorrect. u see i am a tic tac toe master and i always win matches while playing with my friends The question you asked was"On which grid tile should you put an -mark to make sure you would win?" not"On which ALL grid tile should you put an -mark to make sure you would win?

Milan Varghese - 6 years ago

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Okay, so let me get this straight: you're saying that the answer must be e e ...

The answer to this problem is Either b b or e e , because you need to make a fork (A fork is a double-threat) in order to win. Yes, if you put a mark on grid tile e e , you would create a fork, where the opponent would block one of the threats but you can put a mark on your other threat so you could make a 3-in-a-row... which results in a win, obviously. However, b b is another possible choice to make a fork, and would also result in a win like e e .

If you're talking about the grammar of my asked question... let me clarify. If a question asks for something singular (e.g. On which grid tile ), but you have two possible answers, go use the word "Either". If it asks for something plural (e.g. What are the possible grid tiles ), then the word "Either" is not needed.

Besides, yes, there are these choices " b b ", " e e ", and "Either b b or e e ". Yes, b b is correct. Yes, e e is correct. But we are looking for the best answer in math problems. The best answer is the correct one, and that is, "Either b b or e e ".

I hope I clarified your statement.

Jeremy Bansil - 6 years ago

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then remove the options e and b cause. its better to have e or b only

Milan Varghese - 6 years ago

b,e are correct... while a is correct too.... You play a... then the opponent will play on b..... thus you now play e and game is yours...... Its written in the problem that with the best play... hence.. answer should be ... a,b and e.... all three :)

Abhinav Sharma - 5 years, 8 months ago

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@Abhinav Sharma If you play on A, and then your opponent plays on B, then you will lose the game. If circle plays on B it creates a fork, you can only block one threat by playing on C or D, whichever you choose, your opponent will play the other and win the game. So no, A is not correct, it will indeed cause you to lose.

Camden DeJong - 5 years, 4 months ago

@Abhinav Sharma If you play on a, and your opponent plays on b, your opponent has forked you, and will win with either c or d.

Best play is either b or e.

Brian Egedy - 5 years, 4 months ago

I was thinking of the same thing

Avinash Kamath - 5 years, 6 months ago
Jj Jordan
Aug 7, 2015

The answer this problem was looking for was either B or E. E forces the opponent to either b or d and leaves you to win with the alternate. B forces the opponent to either a or e and leaves you to win with the alternate. a is also a safe place leaving you to win in two by placing your next X on E, but, of course, it isn't an efficient win and doesn't answer the problem as stated.

Yes, but a is not safe because opponent can place on b and then you surely lose.

Danilo Leite - 5 years, 8 months ago

If you place an x on a you ensure you will lose because on your opponents next move he/she will place on b and create their own fork ensuring their victory.

Andrew Wilson - 5 years, 8 months ago

You do know that's it wouldn't even be our turn it would be the other guys turn so it's impossible to know what would still be there.

Taylor Anne - 4 years, 11 months ago

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It's saying 'under best play', which means that your opponent would do as much as possible to keep you from winning.

Kevin Shi - 2 years, 11 months ago

'a' IS A CORRECT ANSWER

Problem as stated: "Find all the possible grid tiles where you can put an X-mark will help you guarantee a win under best play."

Placing the first X in tile 'a' will guarantee a win on your 3rd turn.

'a' IS A CORRECT ANSWER

By placing in 'a,' this will force O to place in the middle.
You then place your next X in bottom right, this offers you 2 ways to win and thus guarantees the win.

Kevin Hokr - 4 years, 4 months ago

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'A' in fact guarantees that you lose. The opponent is then forced to block by placing an O in the centre but this creates a fork for themself meaning they win on the next turn.

Shehan Nanayakkara - 2 years, 11 months ago

So, I feel like the wording should be changed because "best play" implies that your opponent is optimized to block you. If this is the case, then after you play on E, they would surly play on B, Forcing you to play A, which would result in a draw. "Best Play" implies not losing. So I feel like E should not be an answer or the wording should be changed because B is the only move where victory is ensured. It is truly the "Best Play"

Dave Landay - 3 years, 4 months ago

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You're not forced to play A, you can just play D and win.

Shehan Nanayakkara - 2 years, 11 months ago
Chris White
Sep 30, 2015

Always a trick question that is a play on words. It says Find ALL possible grid TILES etc... which means the ONLY possible answers are Either b or e or the one labeled Either a or b, simple intuition shows the answer is Either b or e. Those who answered b only or e only did not read the question properly...

U.N. Owen
Jul 3, 2016

Jesus Christ, people here REALLY suck at tic-tac-toe. The report section is just sad.

Angel McGuay
Mar 13, 2016

If you put a marker on B either way the opponent moves(e or a) you can still win, same with e. YOu move on e, opponent plays b or d, you still win

I disagree with answer. You place an 0 in b, the opponents block is either c or d. Then you win in next play. Makes no sense to ask for all possible answers when you can win just by placing your 0 in b And no further play is required.

Dan Nichols - 3 years, 11 months ago

Still logic is flawed by my these people. If I put an o in block b opponent will have to block my win by placing an x in c or d. They aren't going to play an x in a or e, the only choice is to block one of my 2 winning ways by putting an X in C or D

Dan Nichols - 3 years, 11 months ago

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Except the question states that you play as X while your opponent plays as O. You are playing the wrong side.

Delaney Soames - 3 years, 6 months ago
Sangita Banerjee
May 21, 2021

Yeah this consists of the Diagonal Block and Threat or the 2 corner threat technique which is bound to give you a win.

Dawn Eunbi
Apr 1, 2020

If you put it on B you have two ways to win. You can put it on either A or E, which can secure the win. If you put it on E it is the same, you can either put it on B or D, and you will either way. The way this works is that when you put it down like that, your opponent can only block one of the spaces, leaving you with one more option to win.

Hazens Shah
May 17, 2019

If X chose b, then if O blocks X at e, X wins by playing a, and vice versa. If X chose e, then if O blocks X at b, will win by playing d and vice versa

There's way too many people here saying that 'A' is correct. 'A' is in fact the worst possible position to place the X. Sure, they're forced to block by placing an O in the centre box. But that creates a fork for them, meaning they WIN.

a, b and e are all corect. if u use ur next x for a u force your opponent to place his mark in b, if you follow up with e you are sure to win. It takes more time tho

William Phan
Jan 22, 2016

A is not possible as that allows the opponent to create a fork on B while blocking your own threat of a fork. From here, the opponent will win by placing it on either C or D and there's no way to stop it since you can only block one.

B is possible as that satisfies the creation of a fork, allowing you to win on A or E and there's no way to block it. This will also block the opponent's fork.

C is not possible because of scenario A.

D turns into a tie, thus not guaranteed a win.

E is possible, because it also creates a fork. By placing it on E, the opponent is forced to select either B or D to block it. Placing it on B would allow you to win by placing it on D and vice versa if he places it on D.

It is ab or be

A Former Brilliant Member - 4 years, 9 months ago

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