Already comfortable with the basics? This guide goes deeper than our Tips & Tricks page into the techniques experienced players use to reliably reach the highest dog tiles.
The Corner Strategy Explained
Choose one corner of the board — say, the bottom-left — and commit to keeping your highest-value tile there for the entire game. Only move in the two directions that don't disturb that corner unless you have no other legal move. This turns a chaotic board into a predictable, controllable one.
Snake / Zigzag Pattern
Arrange your tiles in a descending zigzag from your anchor corner: largest tile in the corner, next-largest beside it, then the row below continues in the opposite direction. This "snake" ordering means every tile has a natural place to merge into as the board fills up.
Managing the Board Late-Game
As the board fills, resist the urge to break your pattern just to clear a merge. Instead, look for the move that opens the most new space while keeping your snake order intact. Losing your structure late-game is the most common reason high-scoring runs collapse.
Common Mistakes That End Runs Early
The biggest strategy killers are: moving your anchor tile out of its corner, merging tiles in a direction that breaks your zigzag order, and making moves purely to clear small tiles without considering the resulting board shape.