 | |
 A pair of friends playing connect four | |
| Other names | 4 in a Row The Captain's Duel The Captain's Mistress |
|---|---|
| Designers | Howard Wexler[1][2][3] Ned Strongin[4][5][6][7][8][9] |
| Publishers | Milton Bradley Hasbro |
| Publication | 1974 |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Genres | Connection game |
| Languages | English |
| Players | 2 |
| Playing time | 10' |
| Age range | 6+ |
Connect Four (also known as Connect 4, Four Up, Plot Four, Find Four, Captain's Mistress, Four in a Row, Drop Four, and Gravitrips in the Soviet Union) is a game in which the players choose a color and then take turns dropping colored tokens into a six-row, seven-column vertically suspended grid. The pieces fall straight down, occupying the lowest available space within the column. The objective of the game is to be the first to form a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line of four of one's own tokens. It is therefore a type of m,n,k-game (7, 6, 4) with restricted piece placement. Connect Four is a solved game. The first player can always win by playing the right moves.
The game was created by Howard Wexler, and first sold under the Connect Four trademark[10] by Milton Bradley in February 1974.
- ^ "Intro to Game Design - NYU Game Center - Game Design". NYU Wikis. NYU. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "Inventing Toys at Hasbro". Howard Wexler toys .com. 18 June 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "A City College Toy Story". CUNY Matters. City University of New York. Winter 2001.
- ^ "Obituary: Ned Strongin". The New York Times. April 18, 2011.
- ^ Hall, Sara (13 May 2011). "Strongin Made Fun His Business". Newport Beach Independent. Firebrand Media LLC. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "Ned Strongin". Justia Patents. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "Designed by Ned Strongin". Board Games. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "POWER LORDS - Ned Strongin Creative Services". USPTO.report. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ Cummings, Gerald W. (5 September 1989). "Ball catcher and thrower". google patents. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
Current Assignee: NED STRONGIN CREATIVE SERVICES 1140 BROADWAY NEW YORK NY 10001 A NY PARTNERSHIP NED STRONGIN CREATIVE SERVICES
- ^ "Connect Four". United States Patent and Trademark Office.