Spatial strategy
Players are not only competing across a board, but through height. A harmless-looking stack can become part of a winning line in another plane.
For publishers
Evaluate Fourth It directly in your browser.
Fourth It was conceived as a physical board game. Its complete digital edition now makes the core rules, turn structure and tactical interaction directly testable in a browser.
Why Fourth It
Familiar objective. Distinct decision system.
The win condition is understood instantly, while the coordinate payment system, stacking rules, area rewards and limited action cards create the decisions around it.
Exact-payment placement
Building is constrained by the point cards in hand: row and column are paid separately and exactly. Tactical opportunity and hand management stay linked.
Areas with incentives
The four board areas alter the reward for placing a stone, encouraging players to weigh position against resources.
Controlled disruption
A limited action-card system can alter the board or the players' hands without replacing the central building game.
Physical edition
Current game components at a glance.
This overview reflects the current playable game design and gives an indication of what a physical edition requires. Component design and production choices can of course be refined together with a publishing partner.
1
Game board
A 4 × 4 board with 16 building spaces divided into Countryside, Village, City and Gold Coast. Stones can be stacked up to four high.
70
Normal player stones
35 green and 35 yellow building stones, with different connection shapes for each player.
20
Swap stones
10 per player. These special stones connect to the opponent's shape underneath and the player's own shape on top.
3
Special board pieces
2 white blockade stones and 1 red supervisor piece.
55
Point cards
25 × value 1, 15 × value 2, 10 × value 3 and 5 × value 4. Used to pay row and column coordinates exactly.
32
Action cards
Seven action types (A–G) with a fixed distribution of 12 / 4 / 2 / 2 / 5 / 2 / 5 cards.
1
Rulebook
Setup, turn sequence, building rules, area rewards, action cards and all victory conditions.
The quantities above are taken directly from the current game implementation. They describe the game as it exists today, not a fixed manufacturing specification.
Digital playtest data
The website is also our live test table.
The digital version records aggregate visits and completed games. Once there is enough data for the numbers to be meaningful, the key figures appear here automatically.
—unique visitors
—games started
—games completed
—completion rate
—rooms with a rematch
—avg. local game
We are currently collecting a larger sample before presenting the figures publicly.
Fast evaluation path
From zero to a real match in a few minutes.
- 1
Open the rules
The complete digital rules explain setup, placement, areas, stones and action cards.
- 2
Play against the computer
No account is needed for a first test against the computer.
- 3
Test player interaction
Use local two-player or create an online game to experience the game with another player.
The designers
Oliver Fries & Gilroy Weiland
OF
Oliver Fries
A dedicated board-game player with a collection of more than 300 games across many categories. Originally from Germany and living and working in the Netherlands since 2007. Head of Administration at the German-Dutch Wind Tunnels foundation (DNW).
dnw.aero ↗GW
Gilroy Weiland
An enthusiastic board-game player since 2016. He helped turn Oliver's ambition — designing a board game of their own — into Fourth It. IT Expert at Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS).
ns.nl ↗Contact
Questions about Fourth It?
Publishers and other interested parties can contact the designers directly. We will respond personally.
Message is sent toGilroy Weiland
Next step
Interested in evaluating Fourth It for a physical edition?
Start with the playable version of Fourth It. Interested in the game or in the possibilities for a physical edition? Please get in touch with us.