Card Gomoku
Five in a row, with a hand of cards deciding where you can play. Match your cards to a shuffled 7×7 board, exchange three with the computer, and use Power cards to turn an opponent’s marker into your own. Choose Easy, Medium or Hard AI and play as Black or White.
How to play Card Gomoku
This is GameYantra’s card-based version of Gomoku. The goal is familiar: connect five of your markers in an unbroken horizontal, vertical or diagonal line. The cards introduce a different challenge from the traditional empty-grid game.
- Each match uses one 52-card deck. One randomly chosen rank becomes the Power rank. The other 48 cards form a shuffled 7×7 board, with a blank space in the center.
- You and the AI receive seven cards each. Select exactly three cards and press Pass 3/3 to exchange them with the opponent. Either Black or White may start.
- On your turn, select a card and tap its exact matching, unoccupied board tile. The highlighted tile helps you find it. Your marker claims that space.
- Draw a replacement card while cards remain in the draw pile. The pile never refills.
- The first player to complete five in a row wins. If one player cannot make a legal move, their turn is skipped. If neither can move, the match is a draw.
Power cards and strikes
All four cards of the Power rank have a special role. They can claim the empty center, or strike an opponent’s marker and flip it to your color. A strike changes ownership rather than removing the marker. It can interrupt an opponent’s line and finish your own five in the same move.
The Power rank changes each match and appears above the board. Its four cards are in the deck, but have no matching printed tile. Every other card has exactly one matching board space.
Controls and settings
Tap or click a card, then its board destination. To change your selection, tap another card; tap the same selected card to deselect it. During the opening exchange, selected cards are outlined and their tiles are previewed.
Use +, − and Fit to inspect the board. Mouse-wheel scrolling and pinching also zoom; drag to pan once zoomed. Double-tap with no card selected to toggle zoom. The layout adapts between portrait and landscape while keeping your current match.
Settings let you change sound, coordinates and move hints immediately. AI difficulty and your marker color apply to your next match. Open Help during play without losing your hand.
Strategy tips
- During the exchange, keep cards that can work together along a row, column or diagonal.
- A Power card can be worth saving: it may rescue a position after the opponent claims a useful tile.
- Watch the opponent’s open fours. A strike can break their threat while adding one of your markers.
- The draw pile runs out. Plan around the cards you hold rather than expecting a reshuffle.
Frequently asked questions
Is this traditional Gomoku?
This is Card Gomoku, a variation using a 7×7 card board, seven-card hands and Power cards. You still win by making five in a row, but your hand determines your available moves.
Can I play another person online?
This version offers play against the computer with three difficulty levels.
Does Black always go first?
No. The starting color is chosen randomly each match.
Can I play on a phone?
Yes. Portrait and landscape layouts support touch controls, and you can rotate during a match.